Authorities say detectives talked Frank Forshee into surrendering after a woman was shot.
HILLSBORO, Mo. — A domestic shooting investigation in rural Jefferson County became a search and crisis negotiation after deputies say a Hillsboro man shot a woman, left the home and sent messages daring law enforcement to find him.
The suspect, 65-year-old Frank Forshee, is accused of shooting the woman May 3 after an argument tied to her barking dog. He faces three felony charges and is being held without bond at the Jefferson County Jail. The woman survived and was taken to a hospital. The case has drawn public attention because investigators say the violence was followed by statements about refusing prison, possible self-harm and making the news.
The law enforcement response began after the woman and another resident escaped from a home in the 6900 block of Klondike Road and called 911. Deputies arrived to find that the woman had been shot once. Investigators later said the bullet entered the right side of her abdomen and exited into her left calf. The shooting happened inside a home where Forshee lived with the woman and a man, according to a probable cause statement described in reports. Hillsboro is the Jefferson County seat and sits southwest of St. Louis, but the address tied to the case is in a rural area with woods near the home.
Before officers searched the woods, investigators began collecting the account from inside the house. The male resident told authorities Forshee had been acting erratically in recent days. He said Forshee had been on a meth bender and appeared to be suffering from mental health issues. He also reported that Forshee had threatened the woman with a gun the night before the shooting and fired a round into the floor. On May 3, the witness said, Forshee was arguing with the woman in the living room, which also served as her bedroom, because the woman’s dog would not stop barking.
Authorities said the argument escalated in stages. Forshee allegedly threatened the woman with a small silver pocket knife, went back to his bedroom and returned with a dark .22-caliber revolver with a wooden handle. The woman was on her bed holding the dog when a single shot was fired. A neighbor later told investigators that Forshee came onto the neighbor’s property carrying a gun that matched the description from the witness. According to the affidavit, Forshee told the neighbor he had been holding the gun during the argument and had tried to hit the dog with the firearm when a round discharged.
The search started after Forshee left the home. Deputies, detectives and SWAT team members spent hours looking for him in the wooded area around the property. At the same time, detectives learned he had contacted a family member and made comments that he would not go to prison and might harm himself. That information shifted the response into a negotiation as well as a manhunt. Negotiators reached him by cellphone. Investigators said Forshee wrote that he would make the news and that law enforcement should come find him. The sheriff’s office said detectives kept communicating with him and worked to lower the risk of another violent encounter.
Sheriff Dave Marshak said detectives developed rapport with Forshee and convinced him to surrender. Forshee was taken into custody May 4 without incident. Authorities said he was transported after his arrest to an area hospital for a medical procedure unrelated to the shooting investigation. He was booked into the Jefferson County Jail on May 7. The sheriff’s office later announced that Forshee had been charged with first-degree domestic assault, armed criminal action and unlawful possession of a firearm. Marshak also thanked deputies, detectives and prosecutors for their work in the case.
The timing of the arrest and booking created a public record that stretched across several days. The shooting was reported May 3. Forshee surrendered May 4. He was booked into jail May 7 after the unrelated medical procedure. Local reports said the woman was treated at a hospital and later released, though authorities have not released a full update on her injuries. The court case moved forward after prosecutors filed charges. Officials have not announced a detailed hearing schedule in the reports reviewed, and it was not clear whether Forshee had entered a plea or had an attorney listed in the case.
The case also shows how domestic assault calls can broaden quickly for investigators. Deputies first had to respond to a wounded woman and secure the scene. Detectives then had to sort out what happened in the shared home, including the earlier alleged gun threat, the knife threat, the dog’s barking and the single round that struck the woman. Search teams had to handle a suspect believed to have had a firearm. Negotiators had to manage statements about self-harm and prison. Prosecutors then had to decide whether the evidence supported felony charges. Authorities said the searched home and evidence were consistent with witness statements.
Many details remain held inside the active case. The woman has not been publicly named. The full probable cause statement, full text exchange and full neighbor statement have not been released in the reports reviewed. Authorities have not said whether the dog was injured or whether the gun was recovered. They have not provided a public explanation of the facts behind the unlawful firearm possession count. Those questions may be addressed through future court filings, testimony or hearings if the case proceeds. For now, the public record comes mainly from the sheriff’s office, charging information and summaries of the probable cause statement.
Forshee remained jailed without bond as prosecutors pursued the domestic assault and weapons case. The next milestone is expected in Jefferson County court, where the allegations, witness accounts and evidence from the Klondike Road home can be tested.
Author note: Last updated June 1, 2026.