Akron, OH (WJW/CNN) - Police in Ohio are calling the shooting death of a woman in an intensive care unit a "mercy killing."
Authorities say Saturday night, 66-year-old John Wise took out a handgun at his wife Barbara's hospital bedside and shot her.
Barbara had been in critical condition at the Akron General Medical Center.
She was pronounced brain dead Sunday morning.
A local police captain says officers are looking at the shooting as a homicide, but their preliminary investigation indicates Wise was trying to put an end to his wife's suffering.
The couple had been married for 45 years.
Wise is expected to face charges in court on Tuesday.
WJW/CNN