The civil trial in the homicide of Shirley Carter continued Thursday.

Jason Carter’s wife Shelly, his ex-girlfriend, and a crime scene analyst took the witness stand. Shirley Carter was shot in killed in her home near Lacona on June 19th, 2015. Bill Carter, husband of Shirley, accuses son Jason of committing the murder, and Jason says his father did it.

In his opening statement Tuesday, the attorney for Bill Carter told the jury that he would show the audience that Jason Carter lived a reckless lifestyle, had at least one affair, was deeply in debt, and allegedly killed Shirley Carter to gain access to his parent’s approximately $10 million dollars in assets.

The crime scene analyst, Nicholas Webb, with Texas Forensics Associates testified in his opinion, three shots were fired at Shirley Carter with the first shot missing and second two hitting her. Webb stated he believed the first two shots were fired from outside the house in a bushy area. Webb stated he believed the third shot could have been made from outside or inside the house but the muzzle of the weapon would have needed to be in the doorway. The attorney for Bill Carter asked Webb to look at photos of the crime scene and asked Webb about areas of the house that had been thrown into disarray. Webb said the areas of disarray, in his opinion, were staged and noted that Shirley’s prescription drugs, and other valuables were untouched. Webb stated that it did not appear as though anyone had come or gone in a hurry and that Shirley Carter had not fled as if a burglar had been entering her home. Webb stated that Shirley Carter had made no attempt to grab the phone which gives the appearance she was not alarmed and knew the shooter.

The former girlfriend of Jason Carter who he was having an affair with prior to Shirley Carter’s murder took the stand. The ex-girlfriend told the court Jason had been stressed around the time of Shirley Carters death because of a line of credit coming due.

Jason Carter’s wife, Shelly Carter, took the stand Wednesday, and again Thursday. While the attorney for Bill Carter argued that the Jason and Shelly were in deep debt, Shelly insisted that farm finances require large amounts of debt from lines of credit that their farm repaid every year. Jason Carter’s attorney provided tax records that showed a 2014 loss of $255,000 when the farm expanded operations and held grain into the future in the hope of a better price. Tax records show an over $800,000 farm profit in 2015 in part because they carried grain over from 2014 to sell. The attorney also provided documentation that at the time of the murder of Shirley Carter, Jason and Shelly had a personal line of credit and a Visa Card with total limits of $35,000, which were virtually untouched. Their credit rating at that time was 802.

When asked about her husband’s affair, Shelly said that she and Jason have reconciled after much counselling. When the attorney asked her if she still thinks about it, Shelly replied, “Everyday I work on forgiving, but never forgetting, because I don’t deserve that, and neither do my children.”