Texas Domestic Violence Case Ends in Tragedy

A woman involved in a Texas domestic violence against her ex-husband was shot and killed just hours after her grandson’s birthday party. Tosha Pruitt, 44, came to Dallas to see her two-year-old grandson when her ex-husband, Rodney Keeton, Sr., shot and killed her in her car. Mr. Keeton has reportedly been involved in a series of Texas domestic violence incidents during the marriage and had threatened his ex-wife after their divorce in 1997.

Texas Domestic Violence and Protective Orders

Billy Pruitt, Tosha’s brother, had posted on his Facebook page about helping his sister flee from the Texas domestic violence incidents that wracked the household since the couple’s marriage on New Year’s Eve 1987. Ms. Pruitt first filed a protective order against her husband in 1993, but dropped the order two weeks later, then she filed another protective order in 1996. Mr. Keeton reportedly violated the 1996 order at least five times in eight months, which included making threatening phone calls and visiting her workplace.

Texas Domestic Violence Not Described in Divorce Decree

The couple’s divorce was finalized in early 1997. In January of that year, Mr. Keeton violated the protection order against Texas domestic violence yet again. He had threatened Ms. Pruitt’s life, telling her that he would “come over there and burn the house down” and that she would not “live to see the divorce become final” if she changed her last name. The couple’s divorce decree did not describe the incidents of Texas domestic violence in detail, but did allude to “continual family violence” in the home.

Texas Domestic Violence and Reconciliation

In 1999, Mr. Keeton was convicted of aggravated assault on charges unrelated to his history of Texas domestic violence. He was sentenced to 14 years in prison, but was released on parole in 2008. Shortly after his release, he and Ms. Pruitt briefly reconciled. The couple attended church with their sons, as well as their children from their second marriages. Billy Pruitt mentioned on his Facebook page that the two had “started dating and living together again,” but the pattern of Texas domestic violence quickly resurfaced.

Texas Domestic Violence After Birthday Party

In 2009, Ms. Pruitt relocated to Arkansas to escape the repeated incidents of Texas domestic violence. She came to Dallas on November 29, 2014, for her grandchild’s birthday party, where she encountered Mr. Pruitt. At 11:30 that night, he allegedly shot her in the head in her car outside his house. Shortly after the shooting, he reportedly called Billy Pruitt to tell him that he pulled the trigger. He remains in the Dallas County Jail with his bail set at $250,000 pending his trial.

Source: Dallas Morning News

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