UPDATED: 'Things Like That Don't Happen Here'

UPDATE: William Coggins' tenure on the Cinnaminson Board of Education was short, but he was dedicated to the job, according to Board Member Harry Shea. 

Shea was elected to the board one year before Coggins, who served from 1991 to 1994. According to Shea, Coggins' and running mate Joseph Lubitsky's platform centered on guiding the district through a major renovation project at the high school—specifically the addition of computer and science labs. 

Shea described Coggins, who was 60 at the time he was elected, as "a good board member, always prepared ... He took his task as a board member quite seriously."

Though he knew little about Coggins' personal life, Shea believed he had a background in advertising and was working as a consultant at the time of his election. He hadn't lived in Cinnaminson long before becoming involved with the board, Shea said. 

Coggins didn't seek reelection in 1994, but continued to attend board meetings for a brief period, said Shea, who mentioned that he met Laura Coggins once.

"It's very sad to hear what happened," said Shea.

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Residents of Westfield Leas, a 55-and-over development just off Route 130 in Cinnaminson, were understandably shocked Wednesday to learn that one of their neighbors, William Coggins, had been charged with the brutal murder of his wife, Laura, last week.

“Things like that don’t happen here” was the mantra repeated by several residents of the community, populated mostly by retirees.

Few of them were familiar with the Cogginses. One neighbor described the couple as “very private,” and said Mrs. Coggins, 81, was “one of the nicest people you’d ever meet.”

Linda Atkinson, who lives in the same cul-de-sac, across from the Coggins’ home, said she hardly knew the couple, but that Mrs. Coggins came to her door once over the summer and was very confused about where she was and didn’t know where she lived.

Atkinson, who just moved to Westfield Leas earlier this year, and her daughter eventually figured out where Mrs. Coggins lived and escorted her home. Atkinson said she never saw Mr. Coggins.

The 83-year-old is accused of stabbing his wife to death last Monday, Nov. 4, inside the home, then trying to kill himself, according to authorities. He was charged with murder Wednesday.

Mr. Coggins is a former member of the Cinnaminson Board of Education. He served on the board in the early ‘90s. According to a story published April 10, 1994 in the Inquirer, Coggins’ term expired that year and he chose not to seek reelection. Patch was unable to obtain a more specific timeline for his tenure.

This is the ninth homicide in Burlington County this year, and the second in Cinnaminson. Steven Donaldson, of Shamong, was charged earlier this year with the murder of 1-year-old Claudia Nunes at his girlfriend's Cinnaminson home. Donaldson is scheduled to appear before Superior Court Judge Charles Delehey for a pre-trial conference on Nov. 21.

This is also the third murder in the area just in the last month. Twenty-two-year-old Te'Aira Denise Earvin's body was discovered on Carriage House Lane in Riverton on Oct. 13, the victim of a fatal shooting. Her murder remains unsolved.