KILLINGLY, CT – What began as a quiet night enjoying a children’s classic quickly spiraled into a crime scene in Killingly, where police say a man was fatally shot by a woman inside her own home late Monday.
Connecticut State Police responded to a residence on Pratt Road in the Dayville section shortly after 9:30 p.m. on reports of a shooting. Upon arrival, officers discovered 39-year-old Andrew Michael Olson with a gunshot wound to the chest. He was transported to Day Kimball Hospital, where doctors were unable to save him.
Authorities said Olson was watching “Toy Story” with a 12-year-old child at the house when Michelle Yeagher, 65, allegedly entered the room and fired a weapon. The child, unharmed, was present throughout the incident and later provided critical information to investigators.
Yeagher now faces a slate of charges, including murder and carrying a firearm while under the influence, as well as offenses related to the endangerment of the child in her home. Police reports indicate that Yeagher was notably impaired at the time of her arrest.
Investigators detailed a confusing series of events in the minutes and hours after the shooting. Yeagher was found in her bedroom and reportedly appeared disoriented. When officers questioned her about the gun, Yeagher said she could not recall where it was and offered varying explanations for her actions.
In her initial account, Yeagher claimed Olson had confronted her, insinuating that she fired in self-defense while struggling to access her firearm from a safe. However, detectives say her story changed multiple times during interviews, and conflicted significantly with what the 12-year-old witness described to police.
By the next morning, Yeagher had told authorities she could not remember the moment of the shooting, saying only that she awoke in fear after drinking and only realized something was terribly wrong when she saw Olson lying wounded.
Neighbors expressed shock that violence had erupted in their typically peaceful neighborhood. Meanwhile, investigators are working to determine what led to the deadly encounter and whether prior disputes or grievances played a role.
Records from the Department of Correction show Yeagher is being held on a $1 million bond ahead of her first court appearance, scheduled for December 11. The child, now a key witness, has been turned over to the care of relatives.
The investigation is ongoing as detectives sift through evidence and await results from forensic testing on the firearm involved. No further details about potential motives or the relationship between those involved have been disclosed.