An elderly Florida woman who was jailed for killing her terminally ill husband as part of a failed murder-suicide pact in 2023 has spoken publicly following her release.
Ellen Gilland, now 79, was arrested after shooting her husband, Jerry Gilland, 77, inside a hospital room in Daytona Beach. Investigators said she smuggled his firearm into the hospital and fired a single shot that killed him.
After the shooting, authorities said Gilland locked herself inside the hospital room and refused to drop the weapon. While she did not threaten anyone else, the situation escalated into a lengthy standoff that disrupted the hospital.
Gilland was sentenced to one year in prison and 12 years of probation. She entered a no contest plea to manslaughter, aggravated assault with a firearm, and aggravated assault on law enforcement, largely due to the danger caused to staff and bystanders.
“There wasn’t anything else to do,” she said.
Gilland explained that she sat with her husband, whom she described as her best friend, and spoke with him at length before pulling the trigger. She said she could not bring herself to carry out the planned suicide afterward.
Gilland admitted she could no longer properly care for Jerry due to her own declining health, including serious vision problems and ongoing depression.
Reflecting on what followed, she said events unfolded in ways she never expected. When hospital staff entered the room, she was overwhelmed, leading to the armed standoff with police that lasted several hours.
“I’m accepting the consequences,” she told Fox 35. “I don’t want people feeling sorry for me. I did what I did.”
Since her release, Gilland has begun volunteering at a local animal shelter and is completing court-ordered community service. She has also become an advocate for some form of legalized assisted suicide. While she avoids revisiting the events of that day, she says she does not view herself as a violent person despite her conviction.
