T.O. MAN DIES AFTER SHOOTING WIFE IN UTAH.

Byline: Associated Press

A Thousand Oaks man who drove 12 hours from California to Utah with a recently purchased handgun wounded his estranged wife and her male friend before killing himself, police said.

Gary Atherton of Thousand Oaks broke into his wife's fourplex apartment in Roy, Utah, at about 1:35 a.m. Friday, shot her once in the upper left shoulder area and then shot Gilbert McKinley at least twice, said Roy police Lt. Greg Whinham.

Atherton, 42, then shot himself in the head, killing himself.

Michelle Atherton, 42, was listed in fair condition at McKay-Dee Hospital on Saturday and was said to be improving. Gilbert McKinley, 42, of Roy was listed in critical but stable condition. Both are expected to recover.

Inside the car Gary Atherton had rented Thursday in California, police found a note referring to his wife and the intention to take his own life, Whinham said.

He also left written instructions about the care of his dog.

Police believe Michelle Atherton knew she was in danger and that she had moved to Utah to get away from her husband while she obtained a divorce.

``There was some indication that she was afraid of him,'' Whinham said.

Court records show she had obtained a temporary spouse-abuse protective order against Gary Atherton in 2nd District Court on Dec. 9. The order was served on Atherton in California the next day. But it was dismissed on Dec. 23 when neither side showed up for a scheduled hearing, court records showed.

The dismissal came just two days after police said Atherton purchased a .357-caliber revolver in a Thousand Oaks gun store.

About 24 hours before Friday's shooting, Michelle Atherton called police after learning her husband was coming after her.

Extra patrols were assigned to the neighborhood, Whinham said.

Police arrived at Michelle Atherton's home just two minutes after the 911 call was placed, which probably helped save lives, Whinham said.

A man inside the apartment, believed to be Gary Atherton, shouted at police to stay away from the apartment, then told officers to get an ambulance and encouraged Michelle Atherton to crawl through the broken glass door of her apartment. Officers surrounding the residence rushed to carry her out of the line of fire.

Sgt. Kenneth Johnson said the man yelled that police would soon hear a gunshot ``and after the shot, we could come into the apartment.''

After the gunshot, officers saw Gary Atherton kneeling on the floor with a wound to the head.

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MAP: no caption (Snapshot covering Thousand Oaks and Roy, Utah)

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