Motive behind Washington County, Va., murder/suicide a mystery, authorities say

BRISTOL, Va. – There is no paper trail to suggest a violent history in a little house on the outskirts of the city – no orders of protection, appearances in domestic relations court or filings for divorce or legal separation.

By most estimates, the Claymans seemed to be a nice, happy couple – that is until Washington County Sheriff’s deputies arrived at their home early Saturday and found Rebecca Ellen Clayman, 46, shot to death on the front lawn, then heard a gunshot inside their double-wide trailer.

Her husband, Paul Dean Clayman, 47, had gone into the bathroom, shut the door and shot himself in the head, authorities said.

On Monday, Washington County Sheriff Fred Newman said Rebecca Clayman called police at 2:11 a.m. and, with a man’s voice shouting in the background, said her husband was drunk and trying to kill her. Twelve minutes later, she was found dead in the yard, still holding the phone.

The couple lived on Rebecca Clayman’s father’s sprawling farm on Miller Hill Road off Gate City Highway, surrounded by her relatives. A steady stream of cars pulled into her father’s driveway all weekend and members of her close-knit family said they couldn’t believe what happened.

Still, Newman said one relative told investigators that Rebecca Clayman left her husband for a period several weeks ago, although Newman said he did not know why.

“When I read that headline Sunday morning, I knew what was coming,” said Kathy Johnson, executive director of Abuse Alternatives, a domestic violence education and advocacy organization. “Domestic Related. Eight out of 10 times or so, that’s what it’s going to be.”

But, she said it’s rare that a murder would come out of the blue, as this one seemed to.

“Obviously, something was going on,” she said. “It goes back to the very nature of domestic violence: that behind closed doors, we don’t know how anyone lives. Domestic violence has no boundaries, no neighborhoods. And now there’s two parentless children.”

The couple had two grown sons.

Johnson compared the weekend tragedy to a 14-year-old murder in the Bristol community. In 1995, well-known pharmacist Harry David H. Johnson shot his wife in the face with a shotgun at their home near Friendship Resort and Marina on South Holston Lake.

“So many people knew them, and they couldn’t believe it would happen to them,” Johnson said. “A lot of people were in total disbelief because of his status in the community. This one may play out like that, people can’t hardly believe it could happen.”

Johnson said local law enforcement and outreach groups like hers are putting together a homicide assessment team that will study domestic-related murders to try to glean valuable insight into the progression of things. She thinks the Clayman case might be one to study. “It’s easier to explain when there are indicators,” Johnson said. “In this case, they were married for a long time and there weren’t any. But, maybe she did seek out services from somebody. Maybe he did say something to a co-worker. Maybe somebody knew. The whole goal is to see where we’re lacking.”

Newman said the bodies were sent to Roanoke for autopsies, but he doesn’t expect much new information other than blood-alcohol content.

“The only people who can tell us exactly what happened that night, obviously are dead,” Newman said. “At this point in the investigation, it seems that it started as a verbal argument, and somehow escalated to a physical confrontation. Then gunshots were fired and two people ended up dead. And we’ll probably never really know how that happened.”

cgalofaro@bristolnews.com | (276) 645-2531