DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Ellen Gilland, a 76-year-old woman who allegedly shot and killed her terminally ill husband in a Florida hospital, was released on a $150,000 bond on Friday night. She was initially charged with first-degree murder, but the charge was later reduced to assisting self-murder/manslaughter and aggravated assault of a law enforcement officer.
According to police reports, Gilland and her husband had planned a suicide pact for weeks, but Gilland was unable to go through with it after shooting her husband. She then engaged in a four-hour standoff with police officers, which ended when they used a nonlethal explosive to distract her and take her into custody.
During the incident, Gilland pointed her weapon at hospital staff and ordered them to leave the room. Patients in nearby rooms were evacuated, and police officers lined up in the hallway with their guns drawn.
After firing a shot into the ceiling, Gilland dropped the weapon and was taken into custody. She had been held at the Volusia County Jail since her arrest until her release on Friday night.
