Carroll County law enforcement officials have arrested and charged a 76-year-old Westminster woman with murdering her 72-year-old husband after she allegedly pushed him to the ground in their home and bludgeoned him with a cane, according to a news release.

When first responders arrived at Gail D’Anthony’s home the evening of March 1, she told them her husband, John D’Anthony III, was in cardiac arrest.

But an autopsy revealed he had suffered extensive injuries inconsistent with a natural death, including lacerations to his mouth, a broken neck, a broken right rib, two black eyes and large contusions to his hands and forearms.

The medical examiner ruled D’Anthony III’s death a homicide.

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“All of us in law enforcement in Carroll are committed to protecting vulnerable victims of domestic violence, no matter how young or old,” Carroll County State’s Attorney Haven Shoemaker said in a statement.

After the medical examiner’s ruling, members of the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Unit collected evidence at the couple’s Royer Road home and found blood spatter consistent with the blunt force injuries D’Anthony III suffered.

Detectives also interviewed a witness this month who said Gail D’Anthony told her she killed her husband. The witness said Gail D’Anthony recounted pushing her husband to the ground, leaving the room and returning with a cane she used to beat him and block him from getting up.

“Gail D’Anthony entered and exited the room several times, eventually finding her husband unresponsive,” according to the news release. “She then called 911 for assistance.”

Sheriff’s officers took Gail D’Anthony into custody Wednesday in Cumberland. She is being held without bail in Allegany County until she can be transported to the Carroll County Detention Center. She faces one count each of first- and second-degree murder.

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An attorney for Gail D’Anthony was not listed in online court documents.

jessica.calefati@thebaltimorebanner.com

Jessica Calefati

jessica.calefati@thebaltimorebanner.com

Jessica Calefati

Jessica Calefati is an education enterprise reporter exploring how Johns Hopkins University is shaping Baltimore’s future.

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