valerie_jenkins_web_fc_1.jpgCUTLER BAY, Fla. (AP) _ A South Florida woman has been charged with manslaughter for allegedly providing the handgun her husband used to kill himself.

The Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office filed charges Wednesday against 56-year-old Valerie Jenkins. She has pleaded not guilty. Her attorney did not immediately return telephone and e-mail messages seeking comment.

The Miami Herald reports that Jenkins told investigators her husband frequently expressed a desire to die.During an argument in May 2009, she asked her intoxicated husband if he wanted his gun.

When he said yes, Jenkins tossed the gun onto a couch next to him. She told investigators she then heard a single gunshot and found the victim slumped over on the sofa.

Prosecutors say Jenkins demonstrated “reckless disregard for human life.''