A Bowling Green man accused of killing his wife last year in their home admitted guilt in court on Monday.

Terry Ernest Thomas, 77, pleaded guilty in Warren Circuit Court to a charge of first-degree manslaughter, acknowledging that he caused the death of Mary Thomas on Jan. 9, 2024, with a gunshot in a bedroom at the couple’s home on Blue Bell Way.

Court security personnel brought Thomas, who was originally charged with murder, into court in a wheelchair.

Warren Circuit Judge Chris Cohron asked Thomas a series of questions about whether he understood the plea agreement that he signed and whether he had enough time to consult with his attorney, Dennie Hardin, about the case.

When Cohron finally asked Thomas whether he wished to plead guilty or not guilty, Thomas hesitated for a moment before saying “guilty,” which the judge noted.

Cohron followed up by asking Thomas if he was sure he wanted to go forward with his guilty plea, which is when Hardin stepped in.

“He’s hesitating because this is a very emotional, tragic case,” Hardin said.

Hardin summarized the facts that supported a guilty plea to the charge of first-degree manslaughter, saying that Terry and Mary Thomas were involved in a verbal argument that escalated to the point that Terry Thomas fired a handgun, with a bullet fatally striking Mary Thomas.

Hardin said the couple had been married for several years.

Cohron then asked Thomas if Hardin’s summation accurately described the incident.

“She had the gun and pointed it at me, I grabbed the gun and then it went off,” Thomas said.

Thomas then responded “yes” to Cohron’s question about whether he fired the gun.

Warren County Commonwealth’s Attorney Kori Beck Bumgarner said in court that law enforcement found that a portion of the bedroom appeared disheveled, but that the area around Mary Thomas’ body did not appear to be disturbed.

Terry Thomas accepted a plea agreement recommending a 15-year prison sentence, and he will return to court on April 21 for sentencing.

The Warren County Sheriff’s Office investigated the incident.

According to prior courtroom testimony, the couple’s daughter called 911 on the night of Jan. 9, 2024, to report having received a phone call from Terry Thomas during which he claimed to have shot his wife in self-defense.

When deputies were dispatched to the home, they encountered Terry Thomas, who initially claimed that his wife shot herself after taking the gun from him and that his wife had attempted to stab him, according to testimony last year from WCSO Detective Vedad Hadzikadunic.

“(Thomas) advised that he and his wife had been having problems for many years,” Hadzikadunic said last year in Warren District Court. “He went into the bedroom to try to make the relationship better, and he advised she produced a handgun, a struggle occurred and then the gun went off.”

Hadzikadunic testified that Thomas also called his son in the wake of the shooting and gave him an account of what happened.

“(Thomas) told (his son) he got tired of arguing with his spouse and he just couldn’t take it anymore and he shot her,” Hadzikadunic said last year.