Homeowner charged in slaying of motorist in his driveway

MARTINDALE, Texas (AP) — A Central Texas man has been charged with murder in the driveway shooting of a motorist who had pulled into his driveway.

Terry Duane Turner, 65, of Martindale, Texas, turned himself in Friday after an arrest warrant accused him of murdering Adil Dghoughi in the early morning of Oct. 11.

Investigators said Turner shot the 31-year-old Moroccan immigrant as the man was backing out of Turner’s driveway about 3:40 a.m. After the shooting, Turner told a 911 operator that the motorist had pulled a gun on him. Investigators said they found no firearm in the car.

Turner turned himself in the day after a warrant was issued for his arrest and was released on a $150,000 bond. No listed telephone number could be found for Turner, and a Caldwell County jail official said the name of Turner’s attorney was unavailable Sunday.

Martindale is a town of about 1,200 residents about 30 miles (48.28 kilometers) south of Austin. The almost two-week delay in Turner’s arrest by Martindale and Caldwell County authorities drew criticism from Dghoughi’s family and supporters, including the Council on American Islamic Relations.

Supporters of Dghoughi and his family held a vigil at the Texas Capitol on Saturday, and another was scheduled for Sunday evening in Martindale.

Mehdi Cherkaoui, an attorney representing Dghoughi’s family, said Dghoughi’s windows were closed when he was shot. “The bullet entered his hand before it entered his head. And the bullet exited the victim’s head, and actually there was enough force for it to travel through the passenger-side window,” Cherkaoui told KTBC-TV of Austin.

Sarah Todd, Dghoughi’s girlfriend, told the station that she and Dghoughi were staying at her cousin’s home in the San Antonio suburb of Converse on the night of Oct. 10 after a barbecue but decided to leave just after midnight.

Turner’s Martindale home is seven minutes from Todd’s. “His habits were to drive around and decompress and listen to music,” she explained.

“Something like this should not have even been questioned. If someone is murdered, whether it’s on someone’s property or out in the street, they should automatically be arrested,” she said.

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