Every investigator has heard a confession that sounds both desperate and calculated. That’s what they heard again in rural Levy County, Florida, where Laura Hawks spent hours beside her dying ex-husband. She even checked on him, and offered him water and tea. Once he died, she also planned to bury him in the backyard.
According to the Levy County Sheriff’s Office in Florida, their deputies had been called to a home in the Williston Highlands neighborhood. A juvenile dialed 911 to report a man dead inside a house. Soon, they found 48-year-old Jason Hawks in the main bedroom with multiple gunshot wounds. There were several layers of clothes piled on top of his body.
The dead man’s ex-wife, 55-year-old Laura Hawks, was arrested at their Florida home.
Investigators stitched a timeline together based Laura’s own statements. Deputies say the couple had a long and documented history of domestic violence.
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Laura told detectives that the day before the shooting, Jason had threatened to kill her. So she took his revolver and kept it hidden. She also said that the next day, Jason walked toward her in the bedroom and was trying to choke her. That’s when she pulled the said handgun from under a pillow and fired, which at first struck him in the abdomen. Then she kept firing over and over again to “put him out of his misery.”
But Jason didn’t die right away and just lay there bleeding for several hours. During that time, Laura did nothing, but stayed with him. Florida police confirmed that she sometimes checked on Jason as he bled out, but didn’t get him any medical attention.
She told detectives the exact thing multiple times: it was “him or me.”
Eventually, of course, Jason succumbed to his injuries. That’s when investigators believe Laura began her plan to hide details. She piled clothes on top of his body to hide it from view. She even told the police that she wanted to bury him in the backyard so that she wouldn’t get arrested. But her plan was cut short when authorities arrived.
I don’t know what the law says, but imo unnecessarily putting yourself in a position where you can claim self defense in killing people should be considered manslaughter at least
— Resurrect John Brown and give him a Battlemech (@qaphqaesque) January 8, 2026
Laura Hawks now faces charges of first-degree murder, failure to report a death, and tampering with evidence. She has been booked into the Levy County Jail in Florida and is being held without bond.
Talking about Laura’s now-dead ex-husband, Jason, a former co-worker, described him as gentle and devoted to his 17-year-old son, per TV20. Apparently, it was easy to see how close they were whenever they were together. The same co-worker also said that Laura struggled with drug addiction and that their relationship was plagued by jealousy and explosive arguments.
While these claims do add some context, would this qualify as a crime?
NEXT UP: Hero Florida Mom Died Protecting Children During Gruesome Murder
