CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WAVY) — New details have emerged after a Chesapeake woman was arraigned after being accused of killing her husband last Friday.
Heather Heck, 46, is facing one charge each of second-degree murder and use of a firearm in the death of Christopher Heck.
Police were called to their home on the 700 block of Sea Palling Lane in Chesapeake for a report of an injured person.
The officer who responded arrived to find Christopher Heck bleeding on the ground next to the front door. He had been shot twice, according to the police narrative in court documents.
Heather Heck told police that she shot her husband because she was worried he was going to hurt their children. She said it began with a verbal argument over the kids disrespecting him.
According to the criminal complaint, a “verbal argument over the children being disrespectful to Mr. Heck. … Ms. Heck went upstairs with the children to separate from Mr. Heck.”
According to her account, Christopher Heck told her that if the children couldn’t be quiet, he would make them be quiet.
Following the argument, she was with in a room upstairs with the kids, when she said she heard him coming up the stairs.
Heck told police that she didn’t know what to do but was worried he would hurt them. That was when she retrieved a gun and emptied the magazine or clip shooting from the top of the stairs.
A neighbor who didn’t want to be identified said they heard the gunfire.
“We heard screaming and stuff like that, and then it was just all the police,” the neighbor said. “That’s all it was. … And then the next thing you know, we saw about six, seven cop cars show up and then the police running in with their guns drawn and everything, and then it was just mass chaos.”
10 On Your Side found the emergency protective order Heather Heck took out April 28 against Christopher Heck, claiming he “committed family abuse and there is probable danger of a further such offense.” The order expired May 1.
“The restraining order? No, I did not know anything about that,” the neighbor said. “Just the one day we’re out here, he said hi to me. … said things like, ‘she’s divorcing me. I’m going to try to save up money to get out of here.’ And that was it. That was two months ago.”
The neighbor pointed to Christopher Heck’s truck full of garbage that he would pick up to make extra money.
“He was trying to save up money and all that other stuff to get out,” the neighbor said.
The neighbor said they were stunned that his two stepchildren and their two friends were exposed to what police call a second-degree murder.
“Especially with the two other children in that house,” the neighbor said. “I can’t believe she did that in front of the children like that. And that’s what’s crazy is like, why?”
Another neighbor, Shannon Cole, said she saw him playing basketball often with the kids, saying she didn’t see Heather Heck as much, but saw Christopher Heck “quite a bit.”
There were four children in the home at the time, with two of them shared by the Hecks.
Heather Heck was arraigned Monday morning and was granted a $100,000 bond on Tuesday. The jail confirmed Wednesday morning that she was still in custody.