Authorities say Susan Paul was shot at Pewitt’s Nest before gunfire struck a police department.
BARABOO, Wis. — Pewitt’s Nest Nature Preserve and the Sauk Prairie Police Department became connected crime scenes on May 8 after deputies say an 80-year-old woman was killed in one public place and gunfire hit another.
The death of Susan Paul, of Prairie du Sac, has led to a first-degree intentional homicide charge against her husband, George Paul, also 80. The case has drawn attention because of the two locations, the witness reports, the later police station shooting and the defendant’s alleged statements about his wife. Paul remains in the Sauk County Jail on $1 million cash bond.
Pewitt’s Nest is usually known as a natural area near Baraboo, northwest of Madison, where visitors find a wooded gorge and stream corridor. On the afternoon of May 8, the preserve’s parking lot became the first scene in the case. The Sauk County Dispatch Center received a report of a shooting at 2:08 p.m. Multiple callers said a man had pulled a woman from a vehicle and shot her several times before driving away toward Baraboo. Deputies arrived four minutes later and found the woman dead from multiple close-range gunshot wounds. Authorities later identified her as Susan Paul. The public setting meant witnesses saw the attack and were able to give deputies immediate information about the suspect and vehicle.
The preserve scene quickly produced an alert to other law enforcement units. Deputies gathered a general description from witnesses and broadcast it while investigators remained at the parking lot. At that point, the suspect had not been stopped, and the direction of travel mattered. The official account does not say what brought the Pauls to Pewitt’s Nest, whether they had visited before or how long they were there before the shooting. It also does not say whether anyone tried to intervene. What it does say is that the first public place in the case was an outdoor site with other people close enough to see the violence and call it in.
The second public place was a police department. At 3:10 p.m., authorities say a man drove a Kia Carnival minivan into the Sauk Prairie Police Department parking lot, got out and fired several shots at the front door and vestibule. The shots struck the building several times. No staff members were injured. One minute later, Sauk Prairie police officers saw the minivan leaving the department and conducted a traffic stop. The driver was taken into custody without incident. The sheriff’s office later said evidence from both scenes and the vehicle showed the same person and suspect vehicle were tied to the preserve shooting and the police station gunfire.
The police department shooting expanded the case beyond a domestic homicide allegation. It added charges tied to public danger, property damage and discharging a firearm near a building. Prosecutors charged Paul with intentionally pointing a firearm at a person, two counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety, reckless use of a firearm, criminal damage to property and discharging a firearm within 100 yards of a building. The homicide count includes domestic abuse and dangerous weapon modifiers. The charge list shows how prosecutors divided the case: one set of allegations tied to Susan Paul’s death and another tied to the threat created when shots were fired at the police department.
Reported complaint details later focused on what investigators say Paul told them after his arrest. He allegedly admitted shooting Susan Paul and claimed she was a “creature” who had been posing as his wife for 55 years. He also allegedly said such creatures were growing in number and trying to take over the world. Investigators said he told them he fired at the police department to get officers’ attention. Those statements have become some of the most widely reported details in the case, but they are only part of the record. The court has ordered a competency evaluation, which will address whether Paul can understand the proceedings and help his defense. It will not by itself decide whether the allegations are true.
Police contacts before May 8 are also part of the reported complaint history. Staff at the Sauk Prairie Police Department said they knew Paul from earlier calls and believed he had dementia and was supposed to be receiving services. One reported account said he had previously made threats toward police staff. The public record does not include a full medical history, and authorities have not released a final finding about his mental state at the time of the shootings. The competency review places that issue before the court in a formal way. The case can continue only as the court allows under rules governing a defendant’s ability to take part in the process.
Evidence described publicly includes a handgun, a purse believed to belong to Susan Paul and blood found inside the minivan. The sheriff’s office said the Wisconsin State Patrol, Baraboo Police Department, Sauk Prairie Police Department and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources assisted. Their roles reflect the split geography of the case: a state natural area, a local police department, a roadway stop and a county jail booking. The sheriff’s office said after the arrest that there was no threat to the community. Still, the fact that both scenes were open or public spaces shaped how the case unfolded and how quickly witnesses and officers became part of the record.
The bond decision came after prosecutors and the defense made sharply different recommendations. Prosecutors asked for a $10 million cash bond. Paul’s attorney asked for $500,000. The court set $1 million cash and ordered the competency evaluation. Paul has another hearing set for July 14. Public reports did not show a completed plea. Until the competency issue is resolved, the case may move more slowly than a standard homicide prosecution. Future hearings may determine whether Paul can proceed, whether more evaluations are needed and when prosecutors can present more evidence.
Susan Paul’s death remains the center of the case, even as the police department shooting and alleged statements have drawn attention. She was found in the parking lot of a nature preserve after witnesses called for help. Her husband is now charged in her killing and in the later gunfire. The next known court milestone is the July 14 status conference.
Author note: Last updated June 16, 2026.