Man suspected in wife's slaying kills himself

Man suspected in wife's slaying kills himself
August 18, 2009 5:49 PM
A man suspected of fatally shooting his wife this morning in a domestic dispute killed himself after a standoff with police, authorities said.

About 1 a.m., police responded to the 5200 block of West Ferdinand Street and found a 52-year-old woman shot in the back. Her estranged husband had fled the scene and killed himself a little before 7 a.m., police said.

The woman was identified as Christine Johnson, of the address in the 5200 block of West Ferdinand, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office. She was declared dead at the medical examiner's office at 4 a.m.


An autopsy ruled that she died of multiple gunshot wounds and her death was ruled a homicide, officials said.

An autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday for Johnson's husband Gardell Tyler, 57,of the 3000 block of West Walnut Street who is suspected of fatally shooting himself, officials said.


Court records show Johnson took out an order of protection against her husband in 2006 at the same time he was charged with domestic battery, but that the order and the charges were dropped after she failed to appear in court about a month after the cases began.

Johnson's estranged husband then broke down the door to the bedroom and she started screaming, drawing the attention of the 23-year-old daughter, who was across the street at the time, family said. The daughter rushed back to the home but had to break a window to get in because her father had locked the doors, family said.

The daughter tried to intervene as her father shot Johnson about five times but could not stop him from shooting, family members said.

"She went into the bedroom where my sister had been shot and shielded her by lying on top of her after [her husband] had already shot her once,'' said Leslie Brown Simmons, the victim's sister. "Even with his daughter on top of [her] he still kept shooting."
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Man suspected in wife slaying kills himself

Fort Bragg Iraq war vet kills girlfriend, then himself

Fort Bragg Iraq war vet kills girlfriend, then himself

By LAURA NORTON & GLENDA ANDERSON
GLENDA ANDERSON


Published: Tuesday, August 18, 2009 at 1:27 p.m.
Last Modified: Tuesday, August 18, 2009 at 1:27 p.m.
A Fort Bragg couple was found dead Monday evening in what authorities believe is a murder suicide.

Mendocino County Sheriff’s authorities said Tuesday 26-year-old Jacob Gregory Swanson, an Iraq war Army veteran, was found dead of a gunshot wound to the head in his living room. His girlfriend, 36-year-old Amy Rochelle Salo, was found dead of a gunshot wound to the face in a bathroom at the home.

Swanson’s residence is just outside Fort Bragg on rural Airport Road.

Salo had picked Swanson up from work at noon, but never returned to drop him off, Lt. Rusty Noe said. She was a personal trainer and exercise instructor at Mendocino Sports Club in Fort Bragg.
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http://icasualties.org/Iraq/index.aspx

Four People Dead, More Than A Dozen Injured In Shooting at Fitness Center

Think about being one of the people going to the gym for a workout and having this happen. How would you feel the next time you went? Would the memories of this act of violence return? Would you ever be able to feel as if there was nothing else to think about than getting a good workout for your health? Would you ever really feel safe just doing simple things again?

After traumatic events caused by others you are never really the same again.

Suspect Identified In Fatal Collier Twp. Fitness Club Shooting
Four People Dead, More Than A Dozen Injured In Shooting
POSTED: 8:21 pm EDT August 4, 2009
UPDATED: 8:39 am EDT August 5, 2009
COLLIER TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- Authorities have identified a possible suspect in a Collier Township fitness club shooting that killed four people and wounded as many 15.

"I've never seen (anybody) shot before. I feel like it's a dream. I don't know what to think of it," said Mike Hentosz, a witness who was near the room where the shooting took place.

ABC News reported the suspect is George Sodini, of Pittsburgh.

5 Women Taken To UPMC-Mercy In Critical Condition

A representative from UPMC-Mercy in Pittsburgh told WTAE Channel 4's Marcie Cipriani that the hospital was treating five women who were shot multiple times. All five women were admitted in critical condition. Within an hour, three were upgraded to serious condition, and two others remained in critical condition by 11 p.m.

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http://www.thepittsburghchannel.com/news/20283352/detail.html

Sometimes it just takes time to regain the sense of security as days go by without anything else happening. You watch people more closely. You may jump when you hear a car backfire or any other sudden loud noise. You may get edgy when you hear a loud, angry voice. If time takes away your discomfort level, talking about it helps ease your horrific memories and it gets easier to cope as the days pass, then you shouldn't need more help to "get over it" by a professional. The key is, is it getting easier or harder or staying the same within you?

If the emotions and memories get stronger, if it does not seem that you are "getting over it" as days pass, or you find yourself still jumping out of your skin a month later, seek help. It usually means the event took a greater hold on you than you thought it did. Do no deny what is happening inside of you. A professional will be able to diagnose if you need more help or not to overcome it.

If you are a family member of any of the people there yesterday, watch for signs of change in them. Here is a list of changes that happen when people have been exposed to traumatic events and in need of help. You know them better than anyone else and they need you to pay attention to them so they get help as soon as possible.

The following is from the Mayo Clinic

Symptoms
By Mayo Clinic staff
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms

Signs and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder typically begin within three months of a traumatic event. In a small number of cases, though, PTSD symptoms may not occur until years after the event.

Post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms are commonly grouped into three types: intrusive memories, avoidance and numbing, and increased anxiety or emotional arousal (hyperarousal).

Symptoms of intrusive memories may include:

Flashbacks, or reliving the traumatic event for minutes or even days at a time
Upsetting dreams about the traumatic event
Symptoms of avoidance and emotional numbing may include:

Trying to avoid thinking or talking about the traumatic event
Feeling emotionally numb
Avoiding activities you once enjoyed
Hopelessness about the future
Memory problems
Trouble concentrating
Difficulty maintaining close relationships
Symptoms of anxiety and increased emotional arousal may include:

Irritability or anger
Overwhelming guilt or shame
Self-destructive behavior, such as drinking too much
Trouble sleeping
Being easily startled or frightened
Hearing or seeing things that aren't there

Post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms can come and go. You may have more post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms during times of higher stress or when you experience reminders of what you went through. You may hear a car backfire and relive combat experiences, for instance. Or you may see a report on the news about a rape, and feel again the horror and fear of your own assault.

When to see a doctor
It's normal to have a wide range of feelings and emotions after a traumatic event. The feelings you experience may include fear and anxiety, a lack of focus, sadness, changes in sleeping or eating patterns, or bouts of crying that come easily. You may have recurrent nightmares or thoughts about the event. This doesn't mean you have post-traumatic stress disorder.

But if you have these disturbing feelings for more than a month, if they're severe, or if you feel you're having trouble getting your life back under control, consider talking to your health care professional. Getting treatment as soon as possible can help prevent PTSD symptoms from getting worse.

In some cases, post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms may be so severe that you need emergency help, especially if you're thinking about harming yourself or someone else. If possible, call 911 or other emergency services, or ask a supportive family member or friend for help.

UPDATE
Police: Gym shooter 'had a lot of hatred'
A Pennsylvania man who walked into a gym aerobics class and opened fire, killing three women and wounding nine others before turning the gun on himself, "just had a lot of hatred in him," police said Wednesday. George Sodini, 48, brought four handguns into the LA Fitness gym outside Pittsburgh and used three of them, firing at least 36 times, police said.
developing story

Family and friends grieve at Wood family funeral

Family and friends grieve at Wood family funeral
The family of four was found dead in their Heathrow home.
Anthony Colarossi Sentinel Staff Writer
1:04 PM EDT, June 23, 2009
Family and friends of the Wood family gathered at First Baptist Church of Umatilla this morning to mourn the loss J.D., Cynthia, Dillon and Aubrey.

The four members of the Heathrow family died in a murder-suicide discovered early last week. Today's service at the Umatilla church was followed by a burial at Lakeside Memory Gardens in Eustis.

Rev. Brooks Braswell urged the dozens of people attending today's service to turn to God for strength at a time when many might lose faith following a tragedy that is hard to explain or understand.

Braswell said people often "turn to substance abuse to drown out the pain of a loss." But he told the visitors of another way.
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Family and friends grieve at Wood family funeral

Travis Twiggs: The Un-Happy One Year Anniversary

The following comes from my friend Lily Casura over at Healing Combat Trauma. It's hard to believe a year has come and gone since the days she was posting about Travis Twiggs. If you want to know the tragedy of Camp Liberty could have been prevented, take the links she has up on Travis and know none of this should have been allowed to happen.

May 14, 2009
Travis Twiggs: The Un-Happy One Year Anniversary of Combat PTSD's Perhaps Most Visible Death
by Lily Casura
Just a brief note to mention, it was one year ago today that Travis Twiggs passed from this earth, by his own hand, the veritable poster boy of combat-based PTSD. It also marks his brother Willard's passing, who left this earth with Travis, apparently by Travis' hand. It's an absolute tragedy, for any number of reasons -- from the family members and friends the Twiggs brothers leave behind -- to the fact that Travis, personally, was making an impact as a Marine who broke the code of silence, so to speak, and spoke openly about his PTSD. Twiggs wrote about his ordeal in the January, 2008 issue of the Marine Corps Gazette, in an article that has been widely circulated, and is still available on the Web.

Travis Twiggs' suffering was something that really stood out to me -- perhaps because of his very willingness to speak openly about his struggles, something Marines.Just.Don't.Do. We actually broke the news of his death on this blog, before the mainstream media had reported on it -- and in fact, the early reports were wrong on the facts but widely repeated, making the damage that much more painful. (He and his brother were reputed to be hardened criminals, for example, which they were not, although they had been -- at the last -- involved in a carjacking, as part of their initially ill-fated but ultimately successful desire to end their lives. In fact, Twiggs was a much-decorated Marine with multiple combat tours behind him, who had recently met the president, and whose Marines (and his family) deeply loved him. His brother, Willard, was well-loved as well. A year later, not a day goes by that people don't find this site out of a search they're doing for Travis or Willard; and in the days after their death, searches for Willard were almost as popular as those for Travis, though Willard was obviously shyer and less well known. And these tragedies were not the only ones the Twiggs family suffered in a very short amount of time: their beloved grandmother also passed away within days of the Twiggs' brothers' deaths. Hard, hard times for the Twiggs' family, and for all those who loved Travis and Willard.
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Travis Twiggs: The Un-Happy One Year Anniversary

Woman shot, killed outside daycare in murder-suicide

Please pray for the family, the child inside the car and the rest of the people involved from the day care to the police officers.

Woman shot, killed outside daycare in murder-suicide


Posted: Apr. 25, 2009

Roanoke Rapids, N.C. — A Roanoke Rapids man shot and killed his girlfriend in front of a daycare, then turned the gun on himself in a murder-suicide Friday afternoon, said Police Chief Jeff Hinton.

Authorities said that Dawn Taylor, 38, of Roanoke Rapids, picked up a young child from a daycare in the 800 block of Franklin Street and put the child in her car around 4 p.m.

Lavern Bradley Jr., 39, approached Taylor outside the car and shot her three times, then shot himself once in the head, Hinton said.
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http://www.wral.com/news/news_briefs/story/5023931/

Dad who killed family, self was $460K in debt, sheriff says

Dad who killed family, self was $460K in debt, sheriff says
Story Highlights
NEW: Christopher Wood was $460,000 in debt, sheriff says

NEW: Family was unable to sell Florida home, computer reveals

Sheriff: Man apparently killed his wife and three young children, then shot himself
(CNN) -- A man who shot his wife and three children to death before committing suicide in Middletown, Maryland, last weekend had about $460,000 in mortgage and credit card debt, the local sheriff said Tuesday.


Deputies who examined a computer taken from Christopher Wood's home found information that showed "severe financial difficulties," including money owed on a home in Florida that the family had been unable to sell, Frederick County Sheriff Charles Jenkins said at a news conference.

Wood was a salesman for CSX Railroad, where he earned about $97,000 a year, the sheriff said.

He left six suicide notes, according to authorities.

Jenkins said the medical examiner had determined that Christopher Wood, 34, shot himself with a shotgun Friday after shooting his wife, Francie Billotti-Wood, and their three young children -- Chandler, 5; Gavin, 4; and Fiona, 2 -- with a small-caliber pistol.

"Traumatic lacerations" found on the bodies were made after their deaths, with either a kitchen knife or a pruning saw, the sheriff said, quoting the medical examiner. Both items were found in the house.

"The injuries were very horrific," the sheriff said.
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http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/04/21/maryland.family.shot/index.html

Father's troubles emerge in investigation of family's slaying

Father's troubles emerge in investigation of family's slaying
Story Highlights
NEW: Note indicated father was having "psychological issues," sheriff says

NEW: Investigators say they've learned Christopher Wood also had money problems

Sheriff: Man apparently killed his wife and three young children, then shot himself

Slain mother's family were longtime residents of the Middletown, Maryland, area

(CNN) -- A Maryland man believed to have shot and stabbed his wife and three young children to death before killing himself with a shotgun was having money problems and left a note saying he suffered from "psychological issues," authorities said.

Christopher Wood, 34, may have slashed at least some of his family members in the killings and used a small-caliber handgun on others, Frederick County Sheriff Charles Jenkins said.

He was found dead of an apparently self-inflicted shotgun wound at the foot of the bed where the bodies of his wife and 2-year-old daughter lay, the sheriff said.

Wood's sons were 5 and 4 years old, authorities said. His wife, Francie Billotti Wood, was 33.

The boys were found in their beds in a single bedroom, the sheriff said. Authorities did not release the names of the children.

"These are horrific incidents," said Jenkins, who said he couldn't remember another homicide in the past 20 years in Middletown, a one-stoplight town northwest of Baltimore. "No one should ever have to be exposed to this."
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http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/04/18/maryland.family.shot/index.html

Calif. hospital worker kills man, wounds another, then kills himself

Calif. hospital worker kills man, wounds another
By AMY TAXIN – 12 hours ago

LONG BEACH, Calif. (AP) — A hospital worker shot another employee to death, critically wounded a second and then killed himself at a medical center Thursday, sending panicked people fleeing, police and witnesses said. Police Chief Anthony Batts Batts would not identify those involved at the shooting at Long Beach Memorial Medical Center but said all were male. He said the motive remained under investigation but noted the violence came amid a flurry of recent shootings in the country.

"This is a trend of active shooters that you have seen nationwide," Batts said at a news conference. "This is becoming a national trend, probably because of the tension that's going on in our society today."

Batts said officers responding to gunfire just before noon found one victim inside the hospital and then discovered a second victim outside, on the north side of the hospital outside the emergency room. Both were taken to the emergency room; one was dead and the other was critical, he said.

The suspect was found dead near the second victim, he said.
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Calif. hospital worker kills man, wounds another

Woman uses rented gun to kill son and herself caught on tape

Police: Woman used rented gun in murder-suicide; actions appeared 'deliberate'
Gary Taylor Sentinel Staff Writer
12:34 PM EDT, April 6, 2009

Casselberry Police said this morning they still have no idea why an Altamonte Springs woman shot her son Sunday afternoon and then turned the gun on herself while the two were target practicing.

Evidence indicated Marie Moore, 44, intentionally shot her 20-year-old son, Mitchell, also of Altamonte Springs, police said. Why she did it, however, remains a mystery.

In a report just released, Casselberry officer Jeffrey Shumway said the two were sharing a firing lane at the Shoot Straight range on U.S. Highway 17-92, taking turns shooting and talking to people in an adjacent lane. "They seem to be getting along fine," he wrote in the report.

"At one point in the video you can see Mitchell Moore firing his pistol down range," Shumway wrote. "Marie Moore walked up behind Mitchell Moore and pointed a revolver at the back of his head and fired a single shot. The act appeared to be deliberate.
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Police: Woman used rented gun in murder-suicide; actions appeared 'deliberate'

UPDATE to story
Marie Moore's suicide notes: 'Had to send son to heaven'
Apr 07, 2009 18:38 -0400



Updated: 10 minutes ago
The woman who killed her son at a Casselberry gun range, then turned her gun on herself, left a notes at her home apologizing for sending "my son to heaven and myself to hell.''

Iraq vet struggled with PTSD then killed wife, himself

TORTURED SOUL: Iraq vet struggled with PTSD then killed wife, himself

Wartime tragedy followed airman home to North Las Vegas

By KEITH ROGERS
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL



...........The fire was so intense it melted plastic reflectors on another truck in the 35-vehicle convoy.

When the flames subsided seven hours later, "Klink," as he was called, recovered Jurn's remains and hauled them back to their base in Balad.

Jason's parents, Art and Monette Klinkenberg of Tooele, Utah, noticed the change in their son upon his return from Iraq in early 2006.

"He couldn't enjoy the Fourth of July," Art Klinkenberg said. "Fireworks, birthday candles, the fireplace in the house. Those were all things that pretty much set him off or made him (go) back to a shell, basically, and not want to talk to anybody.

"So we looked at it kind of like he died in the same time frame (as Jurn) because he was never the same after that."

The battle stress turned tragic last February.

Three weeks after he wrote his college report, "Who Am I -- Self Biography," he shot to death his wife of 17 months, Crystal, and then turned the .38-caliber handgun on himself.

The murder-suicide unfolded Feb. 20 during a two-hour standoff with police at the couple's North Las Vegas apartment. Officers responding to a 911 call heard a struggle inside where the sound of gunfire broke the predawn silence. A SWAT team later found the couple dead in the master bedroom with the revolver at Jason's feet.
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http://www.lvrj.com/news/42491737.html

Fort Bliss Soldier killed by husband at busy Post Exchange

Witness said panic set in and you can imagine what that must have been like. Imagine being a soldier, making it back from combat, feeling secure on base, and then this happens. Where is "safe" after that? Events like this can cause PTSD in civilians, never experiencing combat, so it's easy to imagine how a tragedy like this can cause PTSD in the witnesses at the PX. We've already done a lousy job addressing educational needs of families when it comes to PTSD returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. Had we done a better job, more would have the tools they need to be better able to cope with something like this, but we are so far from it, they will need immediate help at Fort Bliss to take care of everyone on base. From this point on, no one will ever walk into the PX and not think of this horrific event.

Please pray for the family of the female soldier and everyone at Fort Bliss, along with her husband's family. While he decided to kill his wife, they will feel a lot of pain as well.

Fort Bliss Soldier Shot Dead On Post
Arleene Barrios-KFOX News Reporter
Posted: 8:51 pm MDT April 4, 2009
Updated: 9:29 pm MDT April 4, 2009

FORT BLISS, Texas -- Some Ft. Bliss soldiers and their family members are questioning their safety after a soldier was gunned down on post Saturday afternoon.

The shooting happened at the Ft. Bliss Post Exchange Store at about 4:00 p.m. The PX was full of customers when the shots rang out.

“I went to hand the money to the cashier, and the first shot gets fired. It sounded almost like a balloon popping. Everyone completely froze, and I looked over and saw a shadow of somebody running in the back of the store,” said a military wife who wanted to remain anonymous because her husband is a Ft. Bliss soldier.

The couple was out doing their Saturday grocery shopping when someone in the store pulled out a gun and started firing.

“Four shots ring out, and you hear a thud in the back of the store. You hear a body hit the floor, and everyone stares at each other, and then there's mass panic,” she said.

She and other customers dropped to the ground before running out to safety. She said there was a military police officer outside who had no idea what had just happened, but ran inside to help.

“The alleged shooter was believed to be the husband of the victim who is a soldier at Ft. Bliss,” said Col. Ed Manning, Ft. Bliss Garrison Commander.

Manning said the husband showed up and surprised his wife who was shopping at the PX. Investigators said she was shot in the head at close range, then he turned the gun himself in an attempt to commit suicide.

She was pronounced dead at 4:45 p.m. at Thomason Hospital.

Ft. Bliss has not released the name of the soldier, but said the 19 year old soldier recently moved here for training and lived in the barracks.

Her husband, who is a civilian, lived off post, but had access to it because he is a family member. Both are from Washington State.
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http://www.kfoxtv.com/news/19097289/detail.html

UPDATE
Man who shot soldier wife, self is brain dead
The Associated PressPosted : Monday Apr 6, 2009 14:15:43 EDT

EL PASO, Texas — The FBI says a man who shot and killed his wife at a Fort Bliss store before shooting himself is brain dead and expected to be taken off life support.
Kevin Patrick Beckel, 23, was declared brain dead Sunday morning but remained on life support, FBI spokeswoman Andrea Simmons said.
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http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/04/ap_blissshooting_040609/

Hard times, bad health behind murder-suicide

Delco couple a slay-suicide Note cites hard times
By STEPHANIE FARR
Philadelphia Daily News

farrs@phillynews.com 215-854-4225

HAVERTOWN, Pa. - A DISTURBING letter was waiting in the printer of the Herr Drive Line auto-parts store in Havertown when an employee opened the doors yesterday morning.

The computer-generated letter was printed in the apartment above the store, where the owner, Derrick Maylock, 66, and his wife, Suzy, 63, lived.

Derrick Maylock tried to explain in his note, police said, why he had shot his wife and then himself to death in the building on Edgewood Road near Brookline Boulevard where small, plastic crucifixes hung over every doorway.

The letter said that the business had fallen on hard times and that the couple had fallen into bad health, according to Haverford Township police, who have jurisdiction over Havertown.
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linked from CNN

Ohio family found dead in suspected murder-suicide

I have all the compassion in the world for people suffering so much they feel the need to end their lives, but I will never, ever understand what brings them to the point where they feel their families are better off dead as well. Please pray for the rest of the family members and friends coping with this.

Ohio family found dead in suspected murder-suicide

Story Highlights
NEW: Brother says, "There was no indication of anything like this coming"

Man, woman, two children shot to death in home, police say

Suicide note found, but police decline to reveal contents

Killings took place in Whitehall, Ohio, a suburb of Columbus


By Emanuella Grinberg
CNN

(CNN) -- A family of four has been found dead in a suburban Columbus, Ohio, home in what's believed to be a murder-suicide, authorities said Thursday.


Police in Whitehall, east of Columbus, responded to a call around 2 p.m. Wednesday and found the bodies of Mark Meeks, 51; his wife, Jennifer Dallas-Meeks, 40; and children Jimmy, 5, and Abbigail, 8.

"We're confirming all four victims had gunshot wounds, and a gun was found at the scene," Sgt. Dan Kelso said.

A suicide note purportedly written by Meeks also was found at the scene, but police are not releasing the note's contents, Kelso said.

Authorities believe Meeks shot his wife and two children and then himself, Kelso said.

It was the second time this week that a family died in an apparent murder-suicide. On Tuesday, the bodies of Ervin Antonio Lupoe, his wife and five children were found in their Los Angeles, California, area home after Lupoe faxed a letter to a local television station explaining that he and his wife had lost their jobs and felt it was better to end their lives.
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Fort Hood Reservist and Iving Police Officer Kills Wife and Self

Irving police officer, wife found dead

WFAA-TV
Investigators say an Irving police officer murdered his wife while their two children were present in their Fort Worth home.

By DAVID SCHECHTER / WFAA-TV



WFAA-TV FORT WORTH — Investigators say an Irving police officer murdered his wife while their two children were present in their Fort Worth home.

Then, police say, the officer killed himself.

The officer was a 36-year-old Army reservist currently on active duty at Fort Hood.

Police were called to the 5300 block of Mineral Creek Drive shortly after 8 a.m. Sunday. A woman called police after finding the bodies of her sister and brother-in-law, police said.
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Names not being released until family members have been notified

Son kills father, then himself over fast food order

Galveston County boy, father he shot both die
By HARVEY RICE Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle
Nov. 19, 2008, 11:57AM

KEMAH — A teenager and the father he shot before turning the gun on himself after an argument over a fast food order both died after nearly two days in critical care, a hospital spokesman said today.

Robert Lee Mueller Jr., 16, and his father, Robert Lee Mueller, 59, died late Tuesday, Memorial Hermann Hospital spokeswoman Ann Brimberry said.

Brimberry said privacy laws prevented the hospital from releasing the exact time of death or any other information.

Galveston County sheriff's officials were not immediately available for comment.

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http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/6120991.html

Woman killed by ex-boyfriend was granted protection order

Woman killed by ex-boyfriend was granted protection order
By KOMO Staff & News Services
Watch the story


Police say a 26-year-old man forced his way into a Renton apartment Tuesday and killed his estranged girlfriend before turning the gun on himself, while their kids hid in a back room. Two days ago, the man had been served with a permanent protection order.

Man kills ex-wife's boyfriend, self in northwest Houston

Man kills ex-wife's boyfriend, self in northwest Houston
JENNIFER LEAHY and MIKE GLENN
Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle
Nov. 7, 2008, 12:08AM
A Houston man on Thursday killed his ex-wife's boyfriend of two months, then fatally shot himself, police said.

The woman was shot in the hand.

Ildefonso Rodriguez-Saldana went to the home of Daniel Nava Eloisa in the 10300 block of Gladewood, police said.

Rodriguez-Saldana approached his ex-wife and Eloisa as they sat inside a silver Toyota parked in the driveway of the home, preparing to leave for work about 10:45 a.m., police said. He shot Eloisa several times, police said.

Eloisa died at the scene. Lilliana Del Carmen-Rodriguez was shot in the hand, likely trying to pull her 33-year-old boyfriend away from the gunfire, police said.

The estranged couple's 10-year-old son was with his father at the time of the shooting but did not witness it because he had fallen asleep in the car, said Sgt. John McGalin, with the Houston Police Department's homicide division.

Rodriguez-Saldana returned to his car after the shooting, drove around the block, and told his son to go to his mother, police said.

Rodriguez-Saldana then shot himself in the head. His car rolled several feet before striking a tree.
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http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/6098538.html

OHIO:Man shoots ex-wife before killing himself

Man shoots ex-wife before killing himself
Monday, October 20, 2008 12:45 PM
Updated: Monday, October 20, 2008 03:08 PM


The Columbus Dispatch
UTICA, Ohio -- A man shot and killed his ex-wife, a prosecutor's office secretary, before killing himself yesterday, authorities say.

Randy Ricketts, 49, killed Lynette Ricketts, 40, about midday yesterday and then fatally shot himself, authorities said.

Police officers found their bodies in an unattached garage at 566 Jefferson St. at 8:53 p.m. yesterday.

Mrs. Ricketts lived in the house in Utica and her ex-husband lived in the St. Louisville area. The couple divorced in June after a 17-year marriage.

Mrs. Ricketts had worked as a secretary for seven years in the adult felony division of the Licking County prosecutor's office, said Prosecutor Ken Oswalt.
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Ky. killings come 3 years after father's suicide

Ky. killings come 3 years after father's suicide
By BRETT BARROUQUERE Associated Press Writer © 2008 The Associated Press
Oct. 7, 2008, 3:11PM
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A mother who police said stabbed her daughters before shooting herself had raised the children as a single mother after her husband hanged himself three years ago.

Hope Orwick, 35, attacked daughters Emily, 9, and Lindsey, 8, then shot herself in the head, said Jefferson County Deputy Coroner Bob Jones. A relative found their bodies Monday evening. Police had not determined a motive for the killings Tuesday.

The killings confused many in the neighborhood who saw her with the girls every day. A counselor at the girls' school, Wendy Anderson, described Hope Orwick as a volunteer and "just the mom you want supporting the school," and Emily as "the type of student you want 24 of."

She said the school staff saw Hope Orwick on Thursday, the last day of classes before the family was found dead.

"There were no signs. There was nothing that even looked odd," she said. "Any single mom keeping children on their own can be a handful."

Lindsey had a rare chromosome disorder known as cri du chat syndrome, so called because it is characterized at birth by a high-pitched cry that sounds like a cat's. The syndrome can cause developmental disabilities and trouble eating and speaking.
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http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/nation/6045048.html