Shots at Funeral Kill 3, Injure 3; Ex-Spouse Held

A man opened fire on an Easter Sunday funeral, killed three of the mourners and wounded three others, authorities said, and the former husband of one of those injured was arrested.

The shooting took place in the parking lot of the Mountain Home Baptist Church, where family and friends had gathered for the funeral of Effie Collins Justice, 79. The shots were fired shortly before the service was to begin.

Michael Leslie Rainey, 41, was charged with three counts of first-degree murder and three counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, a spokesman for the Henderson County sheriff said.

Capt. Tom Hatchett of the Sheriff’s Department said two men and a woman, whose names were not released, were killed and two women and a child were wounded. He said the attack apparently stemmed from a dispute over land.

The suspect’s former wife, Andrea Rainey, 40, of Kennesaw, Ga., was taken to a hospital in Hendersonville and underwent surgery for a bullet wound, officials said. She is a granddaughter of Justice. The others injured were Andrea Rainey’s sister and niece.

Hatchett said the assailant dropped a handgun and shotgun in the parking lot and fled on foot. Rainey was arrested without incident a short distance away.