Widow Files Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against Husband's Killer

CENTENNIAL, Colo. (AP) — A Colorado woman filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the man who killed her husband as he tried to aid the man's injured wife.

An attorney for Jeanne Atkinson of Centennial says she's suing Kevin Lee Lyons to ensure he doesn't profit from the April 2016 killing. Attorney Phil Harding says Lyons also could be awarded money in an ongoing civil lawsuit.

Harding said Atkinson's lawsuit does not seek money from Lyons' wife or her children.

Dr. Ken Atkinson (credit: CBS)

Lyons is serving life in prison for first-degree murder in the death of 66-year-old Dr. Kenneth Atkinson, for shooting his wife and another woman who came to her aid.

Lyons' defense attorney claimed he was in a marijuana- and caffeine-fueled paranoid state and had previously suffered multiple head injuries in a car wreck.

Lyons will have 21 days to respond to the lawsuit.