Inset: Shelly Peca (Keizer Police Department). Background: The Oregon home where Shelly Peca allegedly killed her husband (KOIN/YouTube).
An Oregon woman accused of killing her seriously ill husband was captured after nearly two weeks on the run, a case made more startling by a Facebook comment from her daughter saying she hoped police would “never find her.” The daughter suggested her 59-year-old father had been in severe decline and “suffer[ing]” from worsening health problems.
“I won’t say much about this but us kids love our parents so much and we love are [sic] mom and hope she is safe and hope they never find her,” Summer Peca wrote in response to a Facebook post about the death of her father, Walter Peca, who authorities say was killed by his wife, Shelly Peca.
“My mom loved my dad more than anything else in this world,” Summer Peca allegedly wrote about Shelly Peca, 56, who has been charged with second-degree murder.
“They were together since she was 17 years old my dad had a lot of heath issues and the doctors and the medicine they were giving my dad for over 30 years and getting is wrong was slowly killing day by day,” Summer Peca also wrote.
The Facebook account appearing to belong to Summer Peca includes posts going back to 2016 and earlier that tag both Shelly and Walter Peca in family photos, with tags also appearing in the other direction. Authorities in Washington state arrested Shelly Peca this week after she disappeared following the discovery of Walter Peca’s body inside the couple’s home in Keizer, Oregon.
“When you have to watch someone you love go from happy and joyful to less than a month a not able to do anything on your own and seeing them in so much pain and no one will help you and watching them suffer and die slowly and painful than you might truly understand what’s going on,” Summer Peca wrote.
Shelly Peca was found Tuesday off a U.S. Forest Service road in a remote part of Chelan County, Washington. She remains in custody while awaiting extradition to Oregon.
Neighbors told local NBC affiliate KGW that they heard people fighting at the Peca household before Walter Peca was found dead inside on July 17. Police have not released a cause of death or details about the circumstances surrounding his death.
Detectives did not name Shelly Peca as a suspect until several days later, after beginning their search.
“She was a kind person,” neighbor Sue Saxton told local CBS affiliate KOIN about Shelly Peca. “That’s why all this was so shocking.”
Another neighbor, who asked not to be identified, confirmed to KOIN that Walter Peca’s health had been declining and he was hospitalized at least twice in the weeks leading up to his death.
“I didn’t know how sick he was. I was so sorry to hear what was going on for the family,” Saxton said. “They always were pleasant and kind when you talked with them, so it’s just very unfortunate.”
According to KOIN, Summer Peca’s comments have sparked online discussion about Oregon’s Death with Dignity Act, which allows certain terminally ill adults to ask for and take physician-prescribed life-ending medication legally.
KOIN asked police about Summer Peca’s post, and they declined to comment.
“I can understand the daughter’s point of view,” Saxton said. “If it was something where she was doing what she thought was best, I mean, I just hope that the family can heal from this.”
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