911 call: 'He was gonna kill me'

ST. MARYS - A St. Marys-area woman can be heard in a 911 recording saying she killed her husband after he had attacked her.

The Auglaize County Sheriff's Office released the recording on Tuesday. The call reported the death of Wesley A. Sweigart, 36. The audio clip, edited to remove personal identification information, can be found on The Daily Standard's website.

At the beginning of the call, Stephanie L. Sweigart, 30, can be heard crying. After the 911 operator asks what her emergency is, Sweigart says, while crying, "My husband's been beating me, and I just killed him."

After asking Sweigart for her address, the operator asks what she meant when she said she had killed her husband.

"He was beating me, he was gonna kill me," Sweigart replied.

Over the course of the call, Sweigart told the operator of a physical altercation with her husband and that he had brandished a knife, making her fear for her life. She said she had sneaked her gun out before her husband was able to find it.

Sweigart can also be heard saying she had shot him and that he was dead in their walk-in closet.

The operator directed Sweigart to put down the gun and not leave the living room from which she was calling and to keep her hands up and clearly visible for officers when they arrived. Sweigart told the operator she would open the blinds so they could see her, that she had put the gun down near the front door and that she was sitting on the couch.

"I left it sitting there because that's where I stopped because I was going to run, but I don't know. I'm scared," Sweigart said.

She also told the operator the shooting happened immediately before she called.

"I ran because I was trying to get - He made me go back in the bedroom after physically assaulting me in the living room. He told me that if I didn't go to the bedroom he was gonna hurt me. He was gonna stab me. He had a knife, and I just, just listened. I didn't know what else to do because my phone was in the living room."

The operator told Sweigart to keep her hands in the air as she exited the house for law enforcement. Before the call ended, Sweigart can be heard saying, "Thank you."

Deputies and St. Marys police officers responded to the 200 block of Pershing Drive in the Sandy Beach community at 3:32 a.m. Saturday, according to sheriff's office information. They reportedly found Wesley Sweigart dead inside the residence.

Sheriff's officials contacted Sweigart family members before releasing the audio.

Auglaize County Coroner Jason Stienecker ordered Wesley Sweigart's body transported to the Lucas County Coroner's Office for an autopsy.

Stephanie Sweigart was arrested on a charge of murder, according to the sheriff's department. She made her initial appearance in court on Monday via video from the Auglaize County jail. Her bond was set at $250,000, subject to a 10% cash option, in combination with an own-recognizance bond. A pretrial hearing for the case is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. Tuesday.