SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — Two Washington lawmakers are criticizing the Department of Veterans Affairs for continuing to employ a Spokane man who last week was charged with first-degree manslaughter in the death of his wife.

U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., expressed concern that 43-year-old Dwayne Thurman remains on the payroll at the VA Homeless Outreach Center in downtown Spokane.

The Spokesman-Review says Thurman pleaded not guilty last week to shooting his wife Brenda last year at their Spokane Valley home, and remains free without bond.

Dwayne Thurman told investigators that he was trying to clean his wife's gun when it fired and struck her in the chest.

McMorris Rodgers says a person charged with a violent crime should at a minimum be placed on administrative leave.

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