Two friends looked over one’s firearms. Then his wife heard a gunshot — and the other man was dead
WEST PALM BEACH — A West Palm Beach man is facing a manslaughter charge after police alleged that he fatally shot a friend in his home last October while showing off his collection of firearms.
Police arrested Dennis Hert on Saturday in connection to the Oct. 20, 2021, shooting death of 53-year-old Anthony Boulch of Royal Palm Beach. Hert, 61, is free on $75,000 bond.
A message left Thursday for an attorney listed in court records as Hert's representative was not returned.
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A West Palm Beach arrest report made public this week described Hert and Boulch as longtime friends. Police say the men spent the hours before the shooting in Hert's home on Heath Circle South, drinking two bottles of bourbon and reminiscing about old times while reviewing Hert’s weapons collection of 62 firearms and 41 knives.
Hert’s wife told investigators she invited Boulch to stay for the night because she did not want him to drive home after he drank beer during dinner. She left the men in the dining room and went to bed. She woke up at about 2 that morning, and again a few hours later, to find her husband and Boulch still awake and talking, she told investigators.
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She described seeing a long rifle in her husband's hands along with a few handguns sitting on a table. She told both men they needed to go to bed, and both agreed they would clean up the table and get some some rest, according to the arrest report.
Hert's wife said she was returning to her bedroom when she heard a gunshot, police reported. She told investigators she saw Boulch fall from a chair to the ground and found her husband in what appeared to be a state of shock.
Hert performed CPR until the officers arrived, his wife said. He was later taken to JFK Medical Center North for evaluation. A blood draw done at the hospital revealed that Hert had a blood-alcohol level that was double the legal threshold for intoxication, police said.
Upon Hert's release, he went to the police department headquarters to give a statement.
Hert told investigators that he and Boulch sat up much of the night drinking and sharing stories.
Hert said he was preparing to go to bed and thought he had put all of the weapons away. When describing the shooting, Hert said he could not remember what happened aside from his wife standing over him calling 911.
He told investigators that the last weapon he recalled showing Boulch was a World War I-era rifle. Hert said he did not recall the weapon going off or performing CPR on Boulch.
Police examining the shooting scene found two 9mm handguns and a .45-caliber handgun on the dining room table. According to the report, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office Firearms lab determined that a bullet removed from Boulch during an autopsy came from a Beretta 9mm handgun.
The autopsy revealed that the bullet went through Boulch's right bicep and into his chest. The report does not indicate how the weapon was discharged.
Court records show that Hert recently settled a civil lawsuit with Boulch's estate for an unspecified amount.
Boulch's death was one of 109 homicides
jwhigham@ppbpost.com
@JuliusWhigham
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Friend's death brings manslaughter charge for West Palm Beach man
