Indian American man shoots wife dead

Sonia Nallan, a technical recruiter at Encore Semiconductors, was allegedly shot dead by her husband James Nallan, also an Indian-American, at a home on Indigo Oak Lane, San Jose. James, 63, was arrested and booked into the Santa Clara County Jail for murder. Officers arrived to find her with at least one gunshot wound, police said. She was rushed to the hospital, where she was  pronounced dead. The motive in the shooting that took place on Saturday is still under investi gation, San Jose Police Department said. There are no outstanding suspects.

Sonia has left behind her two sons -- Sahil, 21, who attends UC Berkeley and Nitin, 20, who attends UC Irvine. Chris Nallan, the suspect’s younger brother, visited the Nallans’ two-story stucco said the family is in shock. “They had a wonderful relationship,” he was quoted as saying by The Mercury News.

James and Sonia met at a technology firm and had been married for decades, Chris Nallan said.

About seven years ago, James suffered severe injuries in a fall while doing home repairs. And he fell into a coma for three months. When he awoke, his personality had changed dramatically, his brother said. Once fun-loving and engaging, he became withdrawn, and his moods were unpredictable, Chris said.

Sonia Nallan cared for her husband, who was unable to work, he said. “She knew he wasn’t right. She was always there. We are a close family. We knew what she was going through,” he added.