MODESTO -- Modesto police continue to investigate what happened before a woman shot her husband in west Modesto last week.
Walter Hinton, 64, died Friday night at a Modesto hospital after he was shot by his wife inside their home in the 400 block of Boone Way about 6:30 p.m.
The couple's five children were inside the home, but police Lt. Rick Armendariz would not say Tuesday if they witnessed the shooting.
Neighbors reported seeing the children, ages 4 to 11, crying hysterically in front of the home as police and paramedics arrived.
The children remain in the care of child protective services.
"Our concern is making sure that the children are in a safe place during the course of the investigations, and that is why we called CPS," Armendariz said.
Police would not release the name of Hinton's wife, but public records indicate that he was married to Claire Hinton, believed to be in her 30s. A woman who answered the door at the Boone home Monday evening identified herself as Claire.
She said she didn't want to discuss the shooting, then shut the door and turned off lights in the home, including Christmas tree lights.
Next-door neighbors who spoke with her since she returned from questioning at the Police Department said she "cries and shakes" every time she starts talking about the incident.
The woman told police she shot her husband in self-defense after an "altercation," Armendariz said.
He would not say what the altercation was about or what Claire Hinton said her husband did that made her feel threatened.
"Through the investigation, we are just trying to corroborate or dispel the (self-defense) claim she is making," Armendariz said.
Bee staff writer Erin Tracy can be reached at etracy@modbee.com or (209) 578-2366. Follow her on Twitter, @ModestoBeeCrime
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