Fort Know, KY: Ft. Knox couple who died Friday identified

FORT KNOX, Ky. (WHAS11) – The Fort Knox couple who died Friday in a double shooting have been identified as Spc. Christopher and Krista Meeks.

Police responded to their residence in the Oak Park neighborhood shortly before 4 A.M.  after receiving a 911 call from their residence.

Responding officers heard gunfire and entered the home where they found the pair with gunshot wounds.

The U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command said the incident may be a result of an apparent domestic dispute.

According to police reports, Spc. Meeks was a human resources specialist with the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division. He’s been at Fort Knox since March 2011.
The last murder at Fort Knox was in 1993.

The names of the victims will not be released by authorities until 24-hours after the families are notified. Two children at the home at the time of the shootings are now in the custody of the Kentucky Department for Community Based Services.

Raymore, MO: Raymore Police arrest husband in wife’s murder

RAYMORE, Mo. — For just the second time since the turn of the century, Raymore Police are investigating a homicide.

It happened early Saturday morning and a suspect has already been arrested and is behind bars.
Danielle Beckett,30, died at the hospital Saturday, less than an hour after police say her husband Erick Beckett shot her.

Despite this being their first holicide case in six years, detectives quickly made an arrest.

“We got a 911 call here today that a woman had been shot,” Raymore Police Captain Jim Wilson told FOX 4 News.

The woman was later identified as Beckett, who lived on South Sunrise.

“Once the victim was taken to the hospital, two other individuals were taken to Raymore Police Department for interviews,” Wilson said.

One of the people investigators interviewed was Beckett’s husband Erick.  While he was at police headquaarters, detectives waited on a search warrant.  Once it was in hand, they got to work.

“They were just investigating the scene and gathering a little bit of evidence,” Wilson told FOX 4 News.

Whatever evidence detectives found — combined with Beckett’s interview led to a first degree murder charge against Beckett.

Wilson says cases like this one just don’t happen very often in Raymore.

“It’s been several years, several years,” he said.

More than six years to be exact.  In late January 2007, 31-year-old Sheldon Haynes had just returned home from a night of bowling, when he was shot and killed in his driveway.

Before Haynes was killed, it had been almost seven years since a murder had been committed in Raymore.

“It’s a pretty quiet neighborhood and we take pride in neighborhood and the patrolling the officers do too,” Wilson said.

Beckett is being held in the Cass County Jail.  He will be formally charged on Monday and is also expected to make his first court appearance.

Fargo, ND: Fargo man charged with felony murder in wife's death

FARGO, N.D. — A Fargo man is accused of killing his wife in a case that was originally reported to police as a suicide.

Ronald Rogers Jr. is charged with two counts, including a felony murder charge that carries a maximum penalty of life in prison. Bail was set at $1 million cash.

Authorities say that 46-year-old Rogers killed Elizabeth Rogers. The 40-year-old woman died of a gunshot wound to the head.

Police say the preliminary investigation indicated the pair were arguing Tuesday night when Elizabeth Rogers fired the gun at her husband and then shot herself when he tried to take the weapon away.

But investigators say the crime scene and autopsy revealed inconsistencies with the original report.

Ronald Rogers is scheduled to make his first court appearance at 8:30 a.m. Monday.

Great Mills, MD: Postal worker jailed in estranged wife’s death

A St. Mary’s man identifying himself as a mail carrier for the U.S. Postal Service remained jailed without bond after a brief court hearing Wednesday on charging papers alleging he went into his estranged wife’s home, dragged her out a window and beat her to death.

James Mitchell Carter, 46, was “holding onto the hope” of reconciling with Kimberly Dawn Carter, witnesses told police, but court papers also state that she recently told him that she was going to soon serve him with divorce papers.

Kimberly Carter also planned to change the locks on Tuesday to her Great Mills area home because she feared her husband had made a copy of her daughter’s key, according to charging papers alleging he appeared in her bedroom at about 3 a.m. that day.

“Mitchell, No!” Kimberly Carter yelled as she and a boyfriend awoke, court papers state, and the suspect initially got into a scuffle with Thomas Norris, who struck the suspect before running outside.

The attack on Kimberly Carter commenced, initially inside the home located in the Greenview West housing area off Chancellor’s Run Road, according to a statement of probable cause filed by detective Cpl. William Raddatz of the St. Mary’s Bureau of Criminal Investigations.

“Then, it appears she was taken out of the basement window and brought to the yard,” the detective wrote. “At this point, she was beaten repeatedly with a blunt object in the face.”

“They think it was a brick, a patio brick,” St. Mary’s State’s Attorney Richard Fritz (R) said this week.

Kimberly Carter died at the scene, and police found James Carter a few hours later at his home in a housing area off Route 5 near Great Mills. Court papers state that he told the law officers that he left his three young children there early that morning while he went out to “drive around,” including stopping at 1 a.m. at a bank in California.

Police found the suspect had several minor injuries, court papers state, including scratches and a large cut on his hands, a bruise on his lip and scratches on his chest. The law officers found more blood on Wednesday as their hunt for evidence took them to Willows Road near Lexington Park.

“They found some bloody clothes on the side of the road that they assume are those of the person who is alleged to have committed the murder,” Fritz said. “They will be subject to forensic investigation, DNA testing.” Carter was charged with second-degree murder in his wife’s death, as well as first-degree burglary.

Witnesses told police Kimberly Carter locked her doors before she went to bed, court papers state, and the prosecutor said there was no evidence of a forced entry to the residence.

She and the suspect had been separated since the middle of last year, court papers state, when she moved out of their home.

A resident of the neighborhood where Kimberly Carter died this week said she moved in there about six months ago. “She was a really nice person,” the neighbor said.

James Carter told a court commissioner after his arrest this week that he worked at the post office in Great Mills, and that he had been employed by the postal service for 13 years. An employee at the post office declined to speak Thursday about Carter’s employment.

Boise, ID: Husband charged in wife's death in Boise

Bruce Macomb, 62, faces a first-degree murder charge for the strangulation of Beba Macomb, 58, early Thursday at their home of 30 years.

Police found the woman's body Thursday afternoon after someone called 911 and asked them to check on the couple at their home at 1620 W. Warren St., just east of South Federal Way.

Bruce Macomb walked out of the home when police arrived and had an injury to his neck, officers say. Police then went inside and found his wife's body.

Police say they have developed undisclosed evidence that Bruce Macomb killed his wife and injured himself. Bruce Macomb was taken to a local hospital for treatment for the neck wound and was arrested after his release early Friday afternoon.

The homicide occurred three days after Matthew Mohler-Kerns, 28, was fatally shot in his car on Franklin Road. No charges have been filed in that case, although Shawn Nathan Fisher - in jail on other charges - is considered a person of interest.

Police have released no information about a possible motive in the Macomb homicide, which investigators believe was premeditated because they recommended prosecutors charge it as a first-degree murder case.

Lynn Hightower, spokeswoman for the Boise Police Department, said they had other possible witnesses in addition to Bruce Macomb, but she declined to release more details.

Bruce Macomb was booked into the Ada County Jail shortly after noon Friday. He won't be able to ask for bond until he makes his first court appearance Monday afternoon.

Public records show Bruce and Beba Macomb lived at the Warren Street home since 1983. A woman who answered the phone at a relative's home declined comment.

Bruce Macomb does not have a felony record in Idaho, according to court records. He pleaded guilty to a DUI charge in 1996 and has had a few traffic infractions since.

Read more here: http://www.idahostatesman.com/2013/02/23/2463007/husband-arrested-for-wifes-death.html#storylink=cpy

Cogan Station, PA: 2 bodies found in SUV fire, murder-suicide probed

COGAN STATION, Pa. — Authorities in central Pennsylvania are investigating the death of a man and woman whose bodies were found in a burning sport utility vehicle as a possible murder-suicide. 

Officials in Lycoming County told The (Williamsport) Sun-Gazette that the bodies of 42-year-old Seth Snyder of Hepburn Township and 38-year-old Cherilyn Kephart were found in the SUV outside his parents’ home along route 973. 

Chief William Solomon of the Old Lycoming Township police department says investigators believe Snyder used an accelerant to set the fire at about 11:30 p.m. Thursday. 

Court records indicate that he had been arrested last fall on a charge of assaulting the victim. Under a protection from abuse order later granted to her, the two were to have no contact other than exchanging custody of their two young children.

Fairfield, CT: Police say man shot self during standoff

Fairfield Police say 40-year-old man killed himself during a standoff sparked by a domestic violence incident Saturday night, Feb. 23.

Douglas Garni of 245 Sunnyridge Ave. Apt. 23 was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after police heard a single shot around 11 p.m.

Police were called to the Colonial Gardens Condominium Complex at 7:24 p.m. Initial reports indicated a verbal domestic disputebetween a boyfriend and girlfriend inside the condo. The girlfriend escaped to a neighbor’s condo, followed by Garni. There she reported being threatened and requested police.

Garni, police said, returned to his residence after officers were called.

The first arriving officers interviewed the girlfriend and learned Garni had several weapons registered to him, which were inside the condo.

A perimeter was set outside the condo awaiting the arrival of the emergency services units.

Bridgeport and Fairfield ESU, along with Fairfield and Norwalk hostage negotiators arrived on scene attempting to make contact with Garni, according to Fairfield Police.

Several nearby condos had to be evacuated and those residents were assisted by Fairfield firefighters. Residents were relocated to Fire Station 2 for the duration of the incident.

American Medical Response and Fairfield Fire Department personnel remained on scene and staged in the area of High Street and Raymond Drive in the event they were needed to provide medical assistance. The Fire Department also provided a heat seeking unit to help the ESU teams.

For several hours negotiators unsuccessfully attempted to make contact with Garni by phone and audible PA systems, police said.

Around 11 p.m., a single gunshot was heard from the wooded area just north of Garni’s condo. ESU members closed the perimeter, searching the wooded area, which quickly led to the discovery of Garni’s body.

Preliminary reports indicate that he sustained a self-inflicted gunshot wound, police said.

The area remained an active crime scene until 2 a.m. Sunday, until the scene could be processed by detectives and the State Medical Examiner’s office personnel concluded their on-scene investigation.
Police expressed sadness at the outcome of the situation.

Kokomo, IN: Ind. man faces assisting suicide in wife's death

KOKOMO, Ind. (AP) — A central Indiana man has been charged with assisting suicide for allegedly making a noose for his estranged wife, who later used it to hang herself.

 

Nicholas E. Ellisof Greentown faces one count of assisting suicide in Jessica Ellis' death. He's being held at the Howard County Jail on a $25,000 bond.

 

The Kokomo Tribune reports court documents say Jessica Ellis had a history of suicide attempts and told a friend her husband had made a noose for her and put the rope in her vehicle so "she could use it on herself if she wanted to."

 

The friend said Jessica Ellis' husband reminded Ellis about the noose Dec. 9, the night before her body was found hanging from a rafter at a Kokomo park's shelter house.

Kentwood, LA: Couple killed in murder-suicide

KENTWOOD, LA (WAFB) -
Authorities have released the names of a couple killed in a murder-suicide earlier this week in Kentwood.

The bodies of Jonathan Williams, 30, and his wife Mallory Ricks Williams, 26, were found by a family member on Tuesday morning.

Investigators say Jonathan shot and killed Mallory, then turned the gun on himself inside their home on Hwy. 1057.

Baltimore, MD: Police ID Pair Involved in Apparent Murder-Suicide

Baltimore police have identified the man and woman involved in a reported murder-suicide in the Pen Lucy neighborhood.

The man was identified as Alvin Baird, 36, and the woman as 33-year-old Candace Baird. Both were found dead in a home in the 3900 block of Frisby Street on Tuesday evening.

Later that evening, police reported through their Twitter account that homicide detectives were investigating the incident as a murder-suicide.

Sgt. Eric Kowalczyk, a police spokesman, said no further information was available about the incident because the investigation is ongoing.

Valley Center, CA: Spouses who dies in murder-suicide identified

VALLEY CENTER — A Valley Center couple who sheriff’s officials said died in a murder-suicide were identified Thursday by the Medical Examiner’s Office as Miguel and Eleonore Ataide.

 

The 48-year-old woman died of multiple gunshot wounds, and her 41-year-old husband died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, an investigator for the office said. Her death has been ruled a homicide.

 

Miguel Ataide’s mother heard her son arguing with his wife Tuesday night at the couple’s house in Valley Center, the investigator said. Gunshots were heard moments later. The son told his mother he had just shot his wife, and he went into his bedroom and closed the door. The mother called 911.

 

Deputies and paramedics arrived at the house on Littlefield Lane near Oak Trail Road about 9 p.m.

The son was found dead in the bedroom.

 

Sheriff’s homicide investigators said both the son’s mother and the wife’s mother had been visiting at the house for several weeks. The wife’s mother also was in the house when the shots were fired.

 

Investigators said it was not known why the couple had been arguing.

Indianapolis, IN:Police: Husband, wife found dead in murder, suicide

INDIANAPOLIS - A couple was found dead in a home on the city's east side after an apparent slaying-suicide, Indianapolis police said.

Just before 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, IMPD officers were sent to a house in the 1800 block of North Priscilla Avenue on reports that two deceased individuals were inside the home.

When officers arrived, they found the body of a man and a woman.

Homicide detectives identified the victims as married couple Brandy Payne, 27, and Cory Gaines, 31.

The Marion County Coroner had yet to confirm the cause of death, but the police report stated that officers found a gun at the scene.

Investigators said the couple had no prior instances of domestic violence.

Family members said the couple had been married for six years.

Miami, FL: Miami father kills young son, himself in shooting rampage

The father of four who went on a shooting rampage in the family’s Miami home was once known for a more uplifting reason – his love of aviation and hot-air ballooning.

Carlos Zuniga, 45, took his own life Wednesday night after shooting his wife, Michelle, 43, and children Lauren, 14, and Stefan, 11.

Stefan died Thursday. Lauren and her mother remain in critical condition at Jackson Memorial Hospital.
    
The sudden spasm of violence in the quiet Coral Way-area neighborhood left detectives, relatives and friends struggling to understand why Zuniga turned on his family. The family had no apparent history of domestic violence.

Certainly, there were clues. He had held several different jobs in the past few years — and most recently, appeared to be closing the family’s hot-air ballooning company, said family friend Colin Graham.

The couple opened the company in 2005 under the name Winds Aloft Aviation Inc. It was commonly known as Miami Balloon rides.

Graham, who worked as a balloon pilot for the family and now runs Arizona’s Endeavor Ballooning, called Michelle Zuniga “a great mom.”

“Michelle and the kids were great people. She is an absolute sweetheart. I have nothing but good things to say about her,” Graham said. “Stefan looked just like his father. Almost identical, like a mini-version of him.”

Zuniga had recently put one of his balloons on sale on an industry website. Graham said he knew the family still enjoyed hot air ballooning recreationally, but did not seem to be doing so well professionally.

The company’s website appears to be defunct, the phone number disconnected.

Carlos Zuniga recently had started working as an aviation safety inspector at the Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA recently announced it would have to make major cuts – including furloughs for employees – under federal sequestration.

Before the FAA, Zuniga worked as a pilot for DHL, an international package shipping company, and before that, flew 737s for Miami Air.

The Zunigas were married in 1998. Neighbors said Carlos Zuniga also had two adult children from a previous marriage.

In an interview with The Miami Herald in 2011, Michelle Zuniga said they founded the company so she could spend more time with her family. The company has taken thousands of people on hot air balloon rides in South Florida.

“We fly in the Redland,” she said. “It’s a beautiful area, and you have a fantastic view of the ocean, the Everglades and what is in the southern part of Dade County, which people don’t even know exists.”

On Wednesday night, a neighbor called 911 shortly after 9:30 p.m. about a disturbance, possibly shots fired, at the home at 2610 SW 24th St.

Miami police rushed to the scene. Another neighbor, who asked not to be identified, told The Miami Herald that he had heard four “pops.”

Neighbor Xavier Cal, who lives next to the Zunigas, said he saw a woman collapse on the patio in front of her home Wednesday night.

“She was lying on the lawn,” he said. “Later, I heard the last shot inside the house.”

Miami police spokesman William Moreno said Thursday morning “screaming and possible gunshots were heard from inside the home,” as officers arrived.

“Officers quickly assembled a small team and made entry into the home to protect those in danger,” Moreno said.

Miami homicide detectives hope to learn more about what may have caused the tragedy when Michelle Zuniga’s relatives arrive from out of state. She remains in critical condition, unable to talk.

“We’ve never heard them fight. The police have never come to the house,” Cal said of the Zunigas.
“I’m in shock.”

“It’s an extremely calm neighborhood,” said Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado, who lives about five blocks from the Zuniga residence. “Never, in my 30 years here, have I seen a violent crime in this neighborhood.”

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/02/21/3245888/11-year-old-dead-2-others-wounded.html#storylink=cpy

Adairsville, GA:Barnsley clerk dead in murder-suicide

The two people dead after an apparent murder-suicide early Thursday divorced just last month.

According to the Bartow County Sheriff’s Office, about 2:40 a.m. Robert Wade Brazell, 42, of Kingsland, entered Barnsley Gardens Resort where Angela Player, 37, was a clerk.

Brazell shot Player before fleeing into nearby woods. The BCSO said deputies, assisted by the Georgia State Patrol and a GSP helicopter, searched the area in an attempt to locate Brazell, who had refused to come out. He was later found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot.

BCSO Public Information Officer Sgt. Jonathan Rogers said, “All I can tell you is that it is family-violence related” when asked for a motive. According to a press release, the pair had divorced in January.

Located on 3,300 acres in Adairsville, the resort felt the impact of Thursday’s shooting.

“Barnsley Gardens Resort is a close-knit family and this unprecedented tragedy is felt across the resort. We grieve for the loss of our friend and colleague, a warm and caring woman who worked devotedly alongside us for nearly five years. Our thoughts, prayers and support are with her family at this time,” said General Manager Michael Gordon. “We want to thank the Bartow County Sheriff’s Office for their professionalism and expedient work this morning. This tragic incident serves to reinforce and remind us all of the serious nature of domestic violence.”

Rogers declined to comment on how Brazell gained access to the campus and where in the resort the incident took place. He also declined to comment on any possible confrontations the pair may have had or whether there was any indication Brazell planned the attack.

Although a mugshot for Brazell was released, no details on his criminal history — and if he had been violent in the past — were released when sought. Rogers declined to comment on whether Brazell had the gun legally.

Rumors spread Thursday that Brazell may have stalked Player, although Rogers also declined to comment on those allegations and whether a protective order was in place.

According to the release, no further information is being released as the investigation is ongoing.

Omaha, NE: Man held without bail in South Omaha stabbing death

A 23-year-old man was ordered held without bail Tuesday in the death of his estranged wife's boyfriend.

Anthony T. Utterback was charged with second-degree murder and use of a weapon to commit a felony for allegedly stabbing Ryan P. O'Donnell early Friday. Police arrested Utterback soon after the incident in South Omaha.

Officers found O'Donnell injured near 40th and Y Streets shortly after midnight. The victim was taken to Creighton University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

A prosecutor told Douglas County Judge Sheryl Lohaus that Utterback had confronted O'Donnell, who was dating his estranged wife. Utterback allegedly pulled a knife and O'Donnell grabbed a crowbar.

The prosecutor said that Utterback stabbed O'Donnell with the knife and that O'Donnell struck back with the crowbar. Utterback appeared in court on crutches.

Both O'Donnell and Utterback have lived in Bellevue, but police did not release their current addresses.

O'Donnell's slaying was Omaha's fifth homicide of 2013. Police have made arrests in three of the cases.

Las Vegas, NV: Man arrested in stabbing death of girlfriend

A man wanted on a California parole violation warrant has been arrested in Las Vegas on a murder count in the stabbing death of his girlfriend, Metro Police said.

Ricardo Glasgow, 53, of Los Angeles and his girlfriend Sharron Jones, 49, had been arguing Sunday night at a home in the 1500 block Silver Knoll Avenue, Metro Police said in a report released Tuesday.

Witnesses alleged that Glasgow threatened Jones with a knife earlier in the evening and said, “Nobody in this house can save you” and “you’re going to die,” according to the report.

Shortly after, Glasgow grabbed another knife from the kitchen, police said. Two women in the home saw Glasgow stab Jones multiple times with the knife, the report said.

The two witnesses tried to stop Glasgow by throwing things at him, but they were unsuccessful, the report said. They called police and fled to the roof, fearing Glasgow would turn the knife on them, police said.

Officers arrived at the home about 11:30 p.m. Sunday and saw the two women on the roof and Glasgow in the front yard, police said. His shirt had blood on it, and when police called to him, he went back inside, the report said.

When officers entered the home, they heard Glasgow say, “Come get me,” and “come see what I’m doing,” the report said.

The officers found Glasgow standing over Jones with a large knife, the report said. Glasgow didn’t obey the officers’ commands to surrender, forcing them to use a stun gun to subdue him, police said.

Jones, of southern California, was taken to University Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead at 3:04 a.m. Monday.

Glasgow was wanted on California warrant for a parole violation stemming from an attempted murder charge in 2005, police said.

Glasgow was booked into the Clark County Detention Center on counts of murder with a deadly weapon, kidnapping with a deadly weapon, resisting police with a deadly weapon, and the fugitive warrant.

Dekalb County, GA: Boyfriend charged in death of DeKalb mother

A suspect has been arrested in the Monday night shooting of a young mother found dead in the driveway of a DeKalb County home.

Carlos Jerome Simpson, 23, who lived at the Eagles Nest Circle home where the shooting occurred, was booked into the DeKalb jail early Tuesday, charged with felony murder, according to jail records.

Simpson’s sister, Lawana Simpson, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the victim, identified by police as 20-year-old Shikhira Dunson, was her brother’s girlfriend and the mother of his 10-month-old child.

Dunson was shot during an argument, according to DeKalb police Assistant Chief J.W. Conroy.

“Last night, I was bathing my kids and my son came in and said they were arguing,” Lawana Simpson said.

She said her brother went outside, and Dunson “came outside and was messing with him.”

“I didn’t know that my brother had the gun,” Lawana Simpson said. “He didn’t know it was going to go off.”

Lawana Simpson said her brother was pointing the gun at Dunson, and his girlfriend grabbed the gun and it fired. “She grabbed it and it happened quick,” she said.

Carlos Simpson drove away after the shooting, but was later arrested, Conroy said.

“It’s a tragedy,” said Charles Simpson, the suspect’s father.

“We loved her like she was our own,” he said of Dunson.

“This wasn’t no hate thing,” he said. “It just happened, and now she’s gone from us.”

The fatal shooting happened on the eve of the funeral for another of Charles Simpson’s children.

He said his oldest son, Charles Simpson Jr., was killed in prison earlier this month.

Charles Simpson Jr. was serving a sentence for aggravated assault when he died Feb. 10 during a scuffle at Smith State Prison near Glennville. His death is being investigated by the GBI.

Charles Simpson Jr.’s funeral is set for Tuesday afternoon at Emmanuel Spiritual Holy Temple in southeast Atlanta.

Whippoorwill, AZ: Woman faces murder charge in boyfriend's death

WHIPPOORWILL, Ariz. (AP) - Authorities say a woman killed her boyfriend on the Navajo Nation after he told her to shoot him.

Carmelita Williams faces a second-degree murder charge.

She told authorities that her boyfriend had physically and verbally assaulted her last week in Whippoorwill. According to court documents, the boyfriend blocked the door of a hogan, gave Williams a pistol and told her she couldn't leave unless she shot him.

Williams says her boyfriend pointed the pistol at himself while she held it in her left hand. She then fired a round into his chest, holding her son in the other arm.

Williams told authorities she tried to call 911 but did not have cellphone service, and her relatives' phones didn't work either.

Her attorney did not immediately return a message left Wednesday.

Falcon, CO: Former Monument man allegedly killed his girlfriend's children and then himself

A former Monument man is suspected in the stabbing death of two young children in Falcon.

Ethan Courrau, 22, allegedly stabbed his girlfriend's children and is believed to have then turned the weapon on himself.

According to the El Paso County Sheriff's Office a call came in at 11:12 p.m. on Feb. 13 of a reported stabbing. When deputies arrived at a mobile home located on the property of the Remington Ranch Equestrian Stables in Falcon they found 19-month-old Scarlett Gallagher dead and her three-year-old brother Ryan Willhite with serious injuries. Willhite was transported to the hospital where he later died from his injuries. The young boy would have been four-years-old on Feb. 26.

Deputies also found Courrau with injuries and transported him to the hospital where he too died.

El Paso County Sheriff's Office public information officer Lt. Jeff Kramer said all indications lead to Courrau's injuries being self-inflicted but they are still waiting on the autopsy results to confirm that.

Kramer said Courrau was the boyfriend of the victim's mother Katie Cane but was uncertain if Courrau lived at the mobile home. He did say that the 9-1-1 call was made by the grandmother of the victims. It is believed that Cane was not at home at the time of the stabbing and when she arrived home she found her children and Courrau.

Courrau is the son of Beth Courrau, a member of the board of directors for Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District and the former president of the North El Paso County Coalition of Community Organizations.

In a statement to another media outlet the Courrau family said, “We are heartbroken for all of the families impacted by the tragic news that has unfolded.”

The statement goes on to say, “It is impossible to wrap our minds around this. There are so many unanswered questions of which we may never know the answers. We loved our son deeply. Ethan struggled with being bipolar 1, and as his parents we actively helped him seek medical treatment.”

The sheriff's office is still conducting their investigation. An account has been set up at Ent Federal Credit Union to help the family of the young victims. It is under “Memorial Account for Scarlett and Ryan.”

Reston, VA: Husband of Reston Fire Victim Found Dead in Texas

RESTON, Va. (CBSDC) – The husband of a pregnant woman who died in a Reston fire Monday morning has been found dead in Texas, police said.

The man was found dead Tuesday in Bandera County, Texas, just northwest of San Antonio, according to Fairfax County police. His death is being investigated as a suicide.

Police have identified the woman who died in the early morning apartment fire as Jennifer Lynne Pearson, 38, who was pregnant when she succumbed to her injuries from the fire. Her death was being investigated as a homicide, but police said after learning of her husband’s death they are not searching for any suspects in the homicide case.

Fairfax County fire personnel responded to a call at about 6:10 a.m. Monday for a fire in the 12000 block of Waterside View Drive in Reston, where they found a fire burning in one apartment of the three-story apartment complex.

Firefighters put the fire out and pulled an unconscious adult woman from the building. Authorities said she was badly burned and later succumbed to her injuries. No other injuries were reported.

A neighbor who lives in the apartment above the one that caught fire told WNEW’s Kevin Patrick that she heard fighting in the apartment below her the night before and woke up to the smell of smoke.

Great Mills, MD: Police arrest husband in wife's death

GREAT MILLS, Md. -

St. Mary's County police have charged a man with second-degree murder in the death of his estranged wife, whose body was found in the backyard of a home in Great Mills.

 

Forty-six-year-old James Mitchell Carter of Lexington Park was arrested Tuesday. He is charged in the death of 38-year-old Kimberly D. Carter of Great Mills. She was found early Tuesday suffering from injuries to her head and was pronounced dead at the scene.

 

Officers say they were called to the home for a report of a suspicious person and found a naked man outside. The man reported that he'd been visiting the woman when another man entered the home, and a struggle ensued. The naked man fled.

High Point, NC: High Point man charged with murder in wife's death

HIGH POINT —

A High Point man has been charged with murder in the death of his wife, police announced Tuesday.

Patrol officers responded to a domestic disturbance call at 2113 Wingate Place about 2:25 p.m. Monday and found a female inside the residence who had been assaulted and was unconscious.

The victim, Safiya Dadacha, was taken to High Point Regional Hospital. Investigators said her husband, Arab Mohamed Ali, 33, made the call to police.

“He said they’d had a fight and then was really vague about what happened,” said High Point Police Department Capt. Tim Ellenberger. “We could tell she had obviously been assaulted.”

Dadacha, who died on Tuesday, had wounds consistent with a beating and possible strangulation, but detectives are awaiting autopsy results to try to get a better understanding of exactly how she died, he said.

“There was no blood and no broken bones. It’s strange,” Ellenberger said. “I don’t think there was a weapon involved. There was some assault with hands.”

Ali was taken into custody Monday evening after being questioned by detectives. He was charged with murder on Tuesday and was jailed under no bond, pending an initial court appearance.

“When we finally got the doctors to say what it looked like, we started talking to him about what happened, and then we were able to piece it together,” Ellenberger said. “He didn’t confess to killing her, of course, but we were able to piece what he told us together with the evidence on the body, what little there was.”

The couple’s two children, ages 2 and 4, were home at the time, but investigators weren’t sure whether they saw the assault, he said. The family is from Ethiopia.

The children are in the custody of the Department of Social Services, police said.

The residence is one of three two-story units in a building off Brentwood Street in southeast High Point. Dadacha’s death is the first homicide in the city in 2013.

Police said their investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to call High Point Crimestoppers at 889-4000 or Lt. Kevin Ray at 887-7830.

Penhook, VA: Smith Mountain Lake dock owners dead in apparent murder-suicide

Two people found dead Tuesday afternoon in a vehicle along a road in Franklin County near Penhook have been identified.

Karen Swanson Yee, 48, and Kim Bryan Yee, 56, were found dead of apparent gunshot wounds, Franklin County Sheriff's Department said.

"This case is being investigated as a murder-suicide, pending results from the medical examiner's office," Lt. Todd Maxey said in a news release.

Around 3 p.m. Tuesday, deputies found one male and one female occupant in a silver 2001 Jeep Cherokee parked on the side of Ramsey Memorial Road at the intersection of Snow Creek Road.
Both victims were confirmed dead at the scene from apparent gunshot wounds.

A handgun was found inside the vehicle.

The Yees, who were married in 1995, were the owners and operators of Penhook Boat Dock, on Jefferson Dock Road in Pittsylvania County.

Mrs. Yee was the daughter of Pittsylvania County Commissioner of Revenue Sam Swanson Jr.

Warminster, PA: Woman, 90, shot dead during seven-hour standoff between police and her upstairs neighbor

A 90-year-old Pennsylvania woman was shot dead overnight after getting caught in a crossfire between police and an armed suspect who barricaded himself inside his apartment. 

Andrew Cairns, 49, surrendered himself early Wednesday morning following a seven-hour standoff in Warminster Township during which he had fired numerous rounds from a high-caliber handgun, according to police.

The drama unfolded at around 4pm Tuesday when police say Cairns was involved in a domestic disturbance with his common-law wife in the 2000 building at the Jefferson on the Creek apartment complex at 675 East Street Road.

A domestic violence case worker was initially dispatched to the scene, but nearly four hours later, a second call came from the residence about shots being fired, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. 

Detectives who were in the area on an unrelated matter rushed to the building and were met with a barrage of bullets fired at by the suspect, who barricaded himself inside his unit. 

Officials said Cairns' wife was able to escape the apartment unharmed at around 8.30pm.  

All the surrounding roads were closed and the apartment building was evacuated, with about 40-60 residents being sent to the William Tenant High School gymnasium where the Red Cross set up a temporary shelter. The Davisville Shopping Center was also evacuated. 

The responding cops took cover in a nearby ravine and returned fire. Warminster Police Chief Mike Murphy said during a press conference Wednesday morning that some of the rounds whizzed by officers' heads, nearly striking them, Phillyburbs.com reported. 

In the protracted gun battle that followed, Cairns’ 90-year-old downstairs neighbor was struck by a bullet and died at the scene from her injuries. It remains unknown who shot the victim.

Her body was discovered inside the unit at around 10.30pm. The woman's relatives have since been notified of her death, but her name is being withheld pending a positive identification by the coroner. 

Cairns remained holed up inside his apartment for hours until a police negotiator finally managed to talk him into surrendering, Patch.com reported. 

At around 2.30am, he finally turned himself in to police and was charged with aggravated assault. It is expected that the 49-year-old will face additional counts. 
Murphy said police have responded to Cairns' apartment in the past for domestic disputes, but none of them were violent.

This is not Cairns' first serious run-in with the law. In 2007, he was charged with making terrorist threats, assault and reckless endangerment, but the charges were dropped for lack of prosecution.

Springfield, MA:Springfield police on Wellington Street triple shooting: Anthony Brown fatally shoots Julie Treadwell, then takes own life

SPRINGFIELD -- Police, probing a triple shooting that took two lives on Wellington Street early Friday, said 27-year-old Anthony Brown fatally shot 26 year-old Julie Treadwell and then took his own life.

Court records show that Treadwell had filed for an abuse prevention order against Brown on Dec. 19, 2012, alleging that a day earlier Brown had broken into her home, kicked a refrigerator door off its hinges and punched her in the face. A section of the document labeled "Notice to Law Enforcement" warned that Brown may have access to firearms.

Under the order, which expired on Jan. 3, Brown was to stay at least 100 feet from Treadwell and two one-year-old children. Brown and Treadwell had been in a relationship and had two children together, according to court documents.

A third victim in this morning's shooting, a 28-year-old city man, was shot at least twice in the incident,. He was taken to Baystate Medical Center and is expected to survive, Capt. Thomas Trites said.

Trites declined to release the name of that victim.

The incident began shortly before 1:30 a.m. when Brown allegedly forced his way through the back door of 108 Wellington St., police said.

Brown, of 51 Dexter St., was confronted at the top of the stairs on the second floor by the 28-year-old male victim and Treadwell's juvenile son. A struggle ensued and Brown produced a gun, Trites said.

The juvenile then locked himself in the bathroom and the 28-year-old was shot in the arm as he jumped out a second floor window to escape, Trites said.

The 28-year-old landed on the lawn and Brown, firing from the upstairs window, shot again, hitting him in the shoulder, Trites said.

Brown then shot and killed Treadwell inside the home before turning the gun on himself, Trites said.

The juvenile and other children who were inside the home were not injured, and are now under the care of relatives, Trites said.

Pueblo, CO: Wife found stabbed to death, husband dies in motorcycle crash

Pueblo, Colo. - Pueblo police officers are investigating an early-morning homicide. It happened shortly before 1 a.m. Tuesday at a home on the 1100 block of Mass Street. It's in Pueblo's Belmont area.

Police said 34-year-old Adeline Whitehead was stabbed to death.  Police believe the victim's husband, 35-year-old Roy Whitehead, fled the scene on a motorcycle. He crashed a short time later on Highway 50 and Baxter Road. He died as a result of his injuries. Police said he is believed to be the suspect in his wife's death.

Police said three children were in the home when they arrived. The children were taken to the police station and reunited with a family member.

We'll continue tracking this story and will update this article as we get more information.

San Jose, CA: Man in Valentine's Day SJ Murder-Suicide Identified

A man suspected of shooting his former girlfriend and then killing  himself at their East San Jose home on Valentine's Day has been identified by  police as Anh V. Pham.

Pham, 29, shot the woman and himself Thursday while they were  upstairs in the two-story home in the 1800 block of Bermuda Way where they  lived as tenants, police spokesman Sgt. Jason Dwyer said.

The woman's name has not yet been released (later identified as Anh Tran, 22).

The two had met about seven months ago and later began dating.  Their romantic relationship lasted roughly five months and ended about a  month ago, Dwyer said.

"They were involved at a certain point in the past," Dwyer said.

After the two split up, "they remained living under the same roof  but in separate rooms," Dwyer said.

On the afternoon of Valentine's Day, Pham allegedly shot his  ex-girlfriend with a handgun then turned the gun on himself, Dwyer said.

Police responded to the home, located across the street from  William C. Overfelt High School, at about 4:30 p.m. after another adult who  lives at the home went upstairs and found the two bodies.

The deaths remain under investigation but investigators may never  know what sparked the shootings, Dwyer said.

"There are only two people who know, and both are dead," Dwyer  said.

Cross Lanes, WV: UPDATE: Husband and Wife Killed in Murder-Suicide; Names Released

KANAWHA COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- The names of the two people found dead inside a home have been released.

Cpl. B.D. Humphreys tells WSAZ.com Dr. Bruce Foster and his wife, Marlise were found dead in their home along Flairwood Drive in Cross Lanes Monday morning.

Deputies are calling it a murder-suicide. Dr. Foster's co-workers came to his house looking for him when he didn't show up for work on Monday. No one had seen the man since Saturday.

Dr. Foster worked with the West Virginia Center for End-of-Life Care.

UPDATE 2/18/13 @ 9:45 p.m.
KANAWHA COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) --The bodies of a husband and wife were found dead inside their Cross Lanes home Monday morning, and police are calling it a murder-suicide.

Kanawha County Sheriff's deputies say the husband and wife died from gunshot wounds, and no one else had entered the home along Flairwood Drive.

Their bodies were discovered just after 11 a.m. after neighbors and coworkers came looking for the couple. Deputies say no one had heard from them in two days.

"[The husband] did not show up to work, and some co-workers got concerned about him," Cpl. B.D. Humphreys said. "They came to the house to check on him, and a neighbor helped with finding a way into the house."

Neighbors described the couple as being very much in love and doing just about everything together. They say they never heard so much as an argument coming from the house.

"They were the perfect couple," Jon Walker said. "They deeply loved each other ... at least that's what we knew them as. Just really genuine, friendly people."

Now, he's just trying to cope with the shock and sadness of losing their loving presence.

"There's no way to ever prepare for anything like this," Walker said. "It never crossed my mind that anything like this would ever happen."

Deputies aren't releasing the victims' identities now, but neighbors told WSAZ.com the husband worked as a physician and his wife worked with him.

They also say the wife had been suffering from health problems.

Keep clicking on WSAZ.com for the latest information.

ORIGINAL STORY 2/17/2013
KANAWHA COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- Two bodies have been found inside a home in Cross Lanes.

Kanawha County Sheriff's deputies responded to the house along Flairwood Drive in Cross Lanes.

Deputies tell WSAZ.com the body of a man and woman were found just after 11 a.m.

Deputies say they are investigating it as a possible murder-suicide.

Coworkers of the man came looking for him Monday morning when he didn't show up for work.

No one had seen the man since Saturday.

No names have been been released.

We have a crew headed to the scene. Keep clicking on WSAZ.com for the latest information.

San Antonio, TX: BCSO: Teacher, boyfriend dead in apparent murder-suicide

The Bexar County sheriff's Department is investigating an apparent murder-suicide after two bodies were found inside a home on Tuesday morning.

The bodies of a man and a woman were found inside the master bedroom of a home in the 11000 block of Buck Canyon after a co-worker of the woman went to the home to check on her welfare.

The deceased woman has been identified as Deanna Tiller, a 50-year-old music teacher at Allen Elementary School in the Northside Independent School District.

The name of the deceased man was not immediately available.

Investigators said they believe the shooting occurred Saturday night.

Tiller's 20-year-old son told investigators that he heard his mother and her boyfriend arguing on Saturday night, so he left the house and came back later.

He told deputies that he rarely interacted with the couple and did not know that there had been a shooting.

BCSO spokesman Paul Berry said the man was found on the edge of the bed with a single gunshot wound to the head. The woman was found face down inside the bathroom.

Detectives were still waiting for the medical examiner around noon to arrive and determine if the woman was shot and, if so, how many times.

Tiller had worked at Allen Elementary School for two years. She previously worked at Murnin Elementary School for four years.

Staten Island, NY: Sources: History of domestic turmoil preceded fatal stabbing of Staten Island woman

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- They fought over finances and their impending divorce, and that's when Adiljan Anarbaev turned to his fists, and a knife, according to police sources.

And when it was over, police found his 44-year-old wife, Ilona Ganzha, dead at his hands, and Anarbaev laying in a third-floor bedroom, still alive with two knives sticking out of him, law enforcement sources said.

The 44-year-old Anarbaev, who's still hospitalized, now faces murder and other charges after the brutal episode inside Ms. Ganzha's New Springville home Monday afternoon.

As more details emerge about the slaying, law enforcement sources detail a history of domestic violence calls from the 42A Country Drive Road home where Ms. Ganzha was killed.

Police responded to a half dozen calls, mainly for verbal disputes and instances of aggravated harassment -- likely stemming from unwanted phone calls -- between January 2011 and September 2012, though none resulted in an arrest, one police source familiar with the case said.

The charges against Anarbaev show he violated a court order to stay away from his wife -- the police source said that order comes from a pending family court case between the two.

As the police source tells it, Anarbaev showed up at the condo at about 2 p.m. on Monday. The door was unlocked, and he headed up to a third-floor bedroom, the source said.

There, the source said, Ms. Ganzha and Anarbaev argued for about 45 minutes about finances and the divorce. Her son from an earlier relationship, Roman Ganzha, was home at the time -- he saw Anarbaev punching his mother, and feared for her safety, the source said.

At some point, Anarbaev walked past the son, went downstairs, got a knife, then came back up, held it over his head, and started stabbing Ms. Ganzha, the source said.

Roman went to two of his mother's young children, and their grandmother, who were also home, and told them to leave, then ran to a satellite office of the NYPD's 122nd Precinct, which is located a couple of blocks away on Richmond Avenue, near the Staten Island Mall, the source said.

When police arrived, Ms. Ganzha's young daughter answered the door, the source said. They found Ms. Ganzha in the third-floor bedroom, unresponsive and bleeding, and Anarbaev with the knives sticking out of him, the source said.

He was rushed to Staten Island University Hospital, Ocean Breeze, in critical condition. Hospital officials could not provide updated information about his condition.

Police say he's charged with second-degree murder, first-degree criminal contempt, and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

Cincinnati, OH: Bakery owner dead in apparent murder-suicide

NORTHSIDE —Two people are dead in an apparent murder-suicide in Northside.

Cincinnati police said they responded to an apartment in the 4100 block of Dane Avenue just after 10 p.m. Monday to check the welfare of a resident.

When officers got inside, they found Tanika Carter, 34, and Christian Mitchell, 36, had been shot to death.

Carter is the owner of Taste of Nikki Pastry Shop on Race Street across from Findlay Market.

News 5's Karin Johnson will have the latest on this story later today.

Fairdealing, MO: 2 dead, 2 hurt in murder-suicide in southeast Missouri

FAIRDEALING, Mo. •  Two people are dead and two others hospitalized after what authorities are calling a murder-suicide in southeast Missouri.

Ripley County Sheriff Ron Barnett says the deaths happened Saturday night in a rural home near Fairdealing, about 140 miles south of St. Louis in southeast Missouri.

Barnett says a couple argued when the woman wanted to leave their home, and the woman's family came to help her move out. He says Colton Turner, 23,  shot and killed his girlfriend's father, Dean McColley Sr. He also stabbed his girlfriend's mother and brother before killing himself.

KFVS reports one stabbing victim was sent to an area hospital, while the other was flown to Memphis, Tenn., for treatment.

The incident is still under investigation.

Tallahassee, FL: Woman found dead at Hickory Hills Apartments, suspect turns himself in

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- A man is facing charges as the investigation of a death at a Tallahassee apartment complex continues.

The body of 45-year-old Mary Scurry was discovered early Monday morning at Hickory Hills Apartments on Jackson Bluff Road. Deputies say that her body was found in a pool side bathroom at the complex.

At 2:40 a.m. that same morning, 24-year-old Steven Ives turned himself in to the Leon County Sheriff's Office. Ives reportedly showed up with blood on his clothes and told deputies that he'd done something “bad” but would not elaborate. Officials say that Ives also mentioned the bathroom at the apartment complex, where Scurry's body was found.

As detectives investigated the scene of the crime by interviewing people and collecting evidence, they say they discovered that Ives had been arguing with Scurry earlier in the evening.

Court records show that Curry obtained an Injunction for Protection against Domestic Violence on January 14, 2013. Ives was served with that protection order three days later.

Ives was taken to the county jail.He's charged with murder and aggravated stalking.

An autopsy is scheduled on Tuesday, February 18.

Westmont, IL: Westmont woman charged with stabbing husband to death

A Westmont woman has been charged with stabbing her husband to death during an argument at the couple’s home Friday, officials said.

According to a press release from DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert B. Berlin, Lisa Davis, 42, of the 500 block of West 51^st Street, has been charged with first degree murder in the death of her husband David, 49.

About 7:29 p.m. Friday, Westmont police responded to a 911 call at the couple’s home and found David Davis bleeding from a knife wound to the right side of his abdomen, the release said. Davis was transported to a local hospital, where he died at 11:36 p.m.

Lisa Davis was arrested at the scene, the release said, and has been in custody ever since. Officials said that she and her husband had gotten into a “verbal altercation” and that she subsequently stabbed him with a kitchen knife.

According to the release, Lisa Davis will appear in bond court at 8 a.m. Monday at the DuPage County Jail.

Rockwall, TX: Police: Woman Killed; Ex-Boyfriend Leads Officers On Chase

A shooting in Rockwall killed one woman on Saturday night. Police said they were forced to shoot her ex-boyfriend after a police pursuit that lasted from Rockwall to Greenville, Texas.

According to a Rockwall police department news release, officers responded to a shooting call in the 2000 block of Summer Lee around 7:53 p.m. Saturday.  Police found a male and female victim with multiple gunshot wounds. Both were taken to the hospital, where the female victim died.

Rockwall police identified the suspect as the woman's ex-boyfriend, 47-year-old Anthony Dewayne Lewis. Officers said Lewis fled east on Interstate 30.

Police told NBCDFW, the chase ended about 45 minutes later with another shooting in Greenville on the westbound service road of I-30. Police said the vehicle driven by Lewis stopped after its tires were spiked and it hit a Texas Department of Public Safety vehicle.

"The suspect then exited his vehicle, pointed a handgun at the officers and was shot by officers on the scene," the Rockwall police department release said. "The suspect was transported to Presbyterian Hospital in Greenville, Texas. The suspect was later flown to Parkland Hospital in Dallas for further treatment."

The police officers involved in the chase were not hurt. 

The condition of the male shooting victim in Rockwall has not been released. Rockwall Police Detectives are looking into that shooting.

The Texas Rangers are investigating the shooting of the suspect in Greenville.

Brooklyn, NY: Brooklyn man nearly decapitated his wife when he killed her with a kitchen knife, cops said

A Brooklyn man nearly decapitated his wife when he killed her with a kitchen knife Sunday, police sources said.

The man went berserk inside the couple’s home on E. 102nd St. in Canarsie about 11:45 a.m., officials said.

He stabbed his wife, identified by relatives as Hazel Robinson, 51, in the neck, partially severing her head, according to sources.

Charges are pending against her husband, who was taken into custody at the scene.

Council Bluffs, IA: Council Bluffs Shooting A Murder/Suicide

Police say the bodies of a man and woman found in a Council Bluffs home Saturday morning was the result of a murder/suicide.

Officers called to the Bluffs Acres mobile home park near Pueblo Road and Chippewa Circle just after 10 a.m. to investigate a report of a shooting found the bodies of 38-year-old Stephony Metzger and 42-year-old Terry Francis in one of the home's bedrooms.

Police say Metzger, who lived at the home, and Francis had been dating for several years. It's believed he shot Metzger before turning the gun on himself. Neighbor Jennifer Iwersen said Metzger had recently been trying to end the relationship.

Metzger was the mother of three children between the ages of 12 and 18. Carolyn Brown, who lives across the street, went to school with the oldest child. "She's recently started college. She was talking on Facebook the other day about how she was really looking forward to a bright future and then unfortunately something like this happened. I feel so terribly sorry for her."

Brown didn't know Metzger well. “I didn’t have many conversations with her, but she seemed really nice and caring. When she would come out with her dogs she would wave and say hi. She never seemed mean at all. I’ve only had pleasant encounters with her.”

ARTICLE: Violence wears many masks

Again this week our domestic violence stereotypes proved untrue. Twice.

On Valentine’s Day, a day dedicated to lovers, Reeva Steenkamp, 29, was shot to death, allegedly by her lover, Oscar Pistorius, the double-amputee known as “the Blade Runner” for his spectacular Olympic track performance last year. Steenkamp was a model, a motivational speaker and, ironically, a crusader against violence toward women.

On Valentine’s Day closer to home, jurors heard testimony in the trial of Nathaniel Fujita, a star high school athlete in leafy, affluent Wayland who’d been headed to even leafier Trinity College to play football. Instead Fujita faces first-degree murder charges in the strangling death of his longtime sweetheart, Lauren Astley, a standout at school known for her spunk, enthusiasm and lovely singing voice.

Neither Pistorius nor Fujita fit the cliches of the domestic abuser. That is, someone who grew up in a poor, troubled or violent family; someone with a pronounced drug or alcohol problem; someone who’s failed in life and whose attacks accelerate from controlling behavior to verbal abuse to ever more violent physical assaults. In fact, the alleged attacks on these women appeared to be unexpected, friends and family have said. Even Astley, who knew of Fujita’s increasing depression, never indicated that she feared him.

Just the opposite of a frustrated loser, Pistorius was a Nike spokesman, rich and world-famous. He grew up in a large and reportedly loving family determined that his amputations would neither diminish nor define him. Fujita for years had enjoyed the status that comes with being an athletic star. His father is a popular music professor at Berklee College of Music. His mother was so worried about her son’s post-breakup bleak moods that she visited Lauren Astley at her job at the Natick Mall.

And neither Astley nor Steenkamp fit the stereotype of abuse victims either: some weak, dependent, poorly educated woman with low self-esteem, few options and, perhaps conditioned by her own violent past, an expectation of abuse. Lauren Astley has been described as strong, bold, focused — an a capella singer ready to pursue a career in fashion at Elon University. Steenkamp used her fame to speak out against sexual violence. “I woke up in a happy, safe home this morning. Not everyone did,” she tweeted just last week, prophetically.

The only stereotypes that fit here: Astley’s breakup with Fujita (breakups increase the likelihood of violence six-fold); and the presence of a gun, a 9 mm pistol, in Pistorius’ home, which dramatically increases the likelihood of a domestic murder, or suicide.

So what to make of all this? Simply that domestic violence spares no one: not the rich, the famous, the beautiful, the successful — or those who are well raised and very much loved.

For 15 years now, Valentine’s Day has also been known as V-Day, a day of global awareness of violence against women. This Valentine’s Day, Steenkamp had been scheduled to speak to teenagers about empowerment and standing up for justice in their own lives. “Wear black this Friday in support against rape,” she had tweeted just hours before she’d planned to don black herself. But by Friday, Reeva Steenkamp was dead.

Logan County, WV: BREAKING NEWS: Man Shot Dead; Girlfriend Claims Self-Defense

LOGAN COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- A man is dead after getting shot by his girlfriend, according to police.

Troopers in Logan County tell WSAZ.com George Bowens, 35, was found shot inside his girlfriend's home along Huff Creek Highway in Davin. That's part of Route 10 just South of Man.

Police were called about 11:40 a.m. Sunday about a shooting following an alleged breaking and entering. When troopers arrived at the home, they found Bowens dead.

Bowens' on-again, off-again girlfriend, Venus Parton, 39, told troopers she shot Bowens in self-defense after he broke in. Troopers are investigating to see if that was truly the case.

Police say the couple had a history of domestic violence, including many incidents that became heated.

Troopers say they're processing the crime scene and working to gather evidence about the relationship between the two. It's still unclear if Bowens actually broke into the home or the reason why.

Charges could be filed if troopers determine Parton did not act in self-defense.

We have a crew headed to the scene. Keep clicking WSAZ.com for the latest information.

East Knoxville, TN: Police: Man who shot pregnant woman armed and dangerous

A 19-year-old pregnant woman fatally shot on an East Knoxville residential street was killed by a boyfriend who remained at large Thursday night, police alleged.

Brandon Scott Donaldson, 22, of Knoxville was arguing with Marcia Crider as she sat in a parked car with her mother in the 3900 block of Porter Avenue when he opened fire on the pair Wednesday morning, according to Knoxville Police Department spokesman Darrell DeBusk.

Crider was struck multiple times. Her mother, whose name has not been released by police, was not injured.

Warrants were issued Thursday against Donaldson on charges of second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder. Police also released his photograph and a warning to the public that Donaldson should be considered armed and dangerous. Bond on the charges has been set at $750,000.

An autopsy performed Thursday showed that Crider was 13 weeks pregnant, DeBusk said.

The spokesman said investigators understand that Donaldson apparently was not the father of the unborn child.

It will be up to prosecutors to decide whether to file any additional charge for the death of the fetus.

State law was amended last year to allow criminal prosecution for an assault against a pregnant woman that causes the death of a human embryo or fetus at any stage of gestation in utero. The law previously applied only to a viable fetus.

After the shooting, Crider's mother drove her daughter a couple of blocks to a pay phone to call E-911.

Emergency responders found the pair in the parking lot outside the Amvets Thrift Store, 4105 Holston Drive.

Crider was transported by ambulance to the University of Tennessee Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead Wednesday afternoon.

Investigators initially responded to the thrift store but quickly shifted their focus back to the shooting scene outside a house at 3941 Porter Ave.

Multiple shell casings littered the street where neighbors reported hearing as many as 10 shots fired.

Neither the victims nor the suspect lived at the address. DeBusk said Crider had some connection to the residence, although he declined to elaborate.

He also declined to detail the circumstances that preceded the shooting, characterizing it only as a domestic dispute.

Copies of the warrants against Donaldson were not immediately available Thursday afternoon.

"The mother was there to pick up the daughter and the argument escalated," DeBusk said.

Donaldson is described as a black male, 6 feet tall, 180 pounds, with black hair, brown eyes, a goatee and tattoos on his left and right forearms.

Knox, IN: Police: Woman killed boyfriend

KNOX -- Starke County police responded to a rural home Wednesday afternoon after a woman called 911 saying she had just shot her boyfriend.

Police arrived at the home on County Road 550 East near County Road 200 South to find 46-year-old Ron Worker, of Knox, unresponsive with a gunshot wound to the chest.

Police said they arrested 51-year-old Kathleen Holt, of Knox, and found a firearm they believe was used in the shooting.

Medical personnel tried to resuscitate Worker, but he died later at IU Starke Hospital.

Holt is being held in Starke County Jail as a suspect in Worker's murder. As of Thursday, her bond had not been set.

An autopsy was scheduled for Thursday.

Murfreesboro, TN: Murfreesboro man charged in wife’s death

Authorities have charged a Murfreesboro man with first-degree murder in connection with the death of his wife who was found on Valentine's Day inside their Kanatak Lane home in the Blackman community.

Jacob Pearman, 30, was taken into custody only a few hours after he allegedly killed his wife, 30-year-old Carla Pearman, according to officials with Murfreesboro Police Department.

“He has been charged with first-degree murder,” said Maj. Clyde Adkison, a spokesman for the Police Department. “During his interview, he did confess to the detectives.”

Adkison said Jacob Pearman remains in custody at the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center, where he is being held without bond until a preliminary hearing, which will likely take place next week.

Police discovered the body of Carla Pearman at about 3:30 a.m. when they responded to 839 Kanatak Lane, located off Fortress Boulevard in the Preserve at Indian Creek subdivision, in reference to a possible suicide.

“At approximately 3:21 a.m., our 9-1-1 communications center received a phone call from the parents of (Jacob Pearman) stating that their son was possibly contemplating suicide,” Adkison said.

When police arrived at the residence less than five minutes later, they discovered Carla Pearman dead in the bedroom of the house, Adkison said.

Just before 6 a.m., Adkison said police tracked down Jacob Pearman in Manchester, Tenn., and brought him back to Murfreesboro for questioning.

Detectives with the Criminal Investigations Division spent more than four hours combing through the house collecting evidence, as the investigation into the case continues.

Authorities have not publicly discussed how she was killed, and an official cause of death will not be released until an autopsy is completed by the State Medical Examiner's Office in Nashville.

The few details that have been released suggest that Carla Pearman was strangled and beaten to death.

Jacob Pearman, a well-known personal trainer at the Murfreesboro Athletic Club, and Carla Pearman, who is originally from Manchester, had been married for less than six months and lived in the house with her young son, whose identity is not being released due to privacy laws.

It is unknown whether the boy was at home when his mother was killed.

Although police have not commented on a possible motive, Jacob Pearman was scheduled to appear Thursday in Rutherford County General Sessions Court for a criminal summons on a charge of felony child abuse and neglect regarding an incident with his stepson.

Randolph County, NC: UPDATED: Two dead in apparent murder-suicide

RANDOLPH COUNTY —

Authorities announced that the Thursday deaths of a Randolph County couple were the result of an apparent murder-suicide.

Deputies responded to 1267 Beverly Hills Drive about 6 p.m. after a 911 caller reported that two people had been shot inside the residence, according to the Randolph County Sheriff’s Office.

Clayton Woodrow Barricks, 29, and Jennifer Dawn Hill, 30, were both pronounced dead at the scene, deputies said.

It was unclear Friday which person investigators believe killed the other. Authorities have not released that information, and sheriff’s officials could not be reached for comment.

Investigators have said the victims “were involved in domestic relationship.” Both bodies were taken to the North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for autopsies.

The scene is just south of High Point in the northwest corner of Randolph County.

The house is on a dirt road behind Flash Gordon Motors and Leasing automotive dealership. The neighborhood was quiet on Friday morning, with no signs apparent that it had been a crime scene the previous evening.

A man who answered the door at the couple’s home who said he was a family member declined to comment. Neighbors reached Friday either said they didn’t know the victims or declined to comment.
Thursday’s deaths involved the second homicide in this part of Randolph County in the past four months.

In an unrelated incident in October, Tina Mae Rook, 36, of High Point, was fatally stabbed in the Prospect Street/Thompson Road area, about a quarter-mile from the scene of Thursday’s deaths.

No arrests have been made in Rook’s death. Authorities said she was seen getting into a pickup truck in the area of Clinton Avenue and Lincoln Drive in High Point shortly before she died on the afternoon of Oct. 13.

According to a description released by the sheriff’s office, the white, full-size, single-cab truck was driven by an unknown white male of slim build with brown, shaggy hair.


Randolph County authorities have ruled the deaths of two people at a residence just south of High Point Thursday night a murder-suicide.

Sheriff's deputies have identified the deceased as Clayton Woodrow Barricks, 29,  and Jennifer Dawn Hill, 30. The couple was involved in a domestic relationship, authorities said. Deputies responded to 1267 Beverly Hills Drive about 6 p.m. after a 911 caller advised that two people had been shot inside the residence. Both victims were pronounced dead at the scene.

Further information about the deaths, such as who authorities believe killed whom, has not been yet been released.

RANDOLPH COUNTY — Two people were killed in a residence on Beverly Hills Drive just outside of High Point Thursday night.

Lt. Ed Blair of the Randolph County Sheriff’s Department said officers responded to a 911 call at 6:15 p.m. to the residence where they found two bodies.

Blair said the bodies will be taken to the State Medical Examiner’s office in Raleigh for an autopsy. More details will be released today by the sheriff’s department.

Ramsey, MN: Eviction notice may have triggered murder-suicide

RAMSEY, Minn. - Anoka County sheriff's officials say a couple found dead in an apparent murder-suicide had received an eviction notice.

The bodies of 67-year-old Caron Fine and 65-year-old Mitchell Fine were found in their Ramsey home Tuesday. Sheriff's Cmdr. Paul Sommer says the couple's daughter asked police to check on her parents after she received an email from her father indicating the couple was being evicted and they planned to kill themselves.

Their bodies were found in their rented house with gunshot wounds to the head. Nine cats were also found dead from apparent gunshot wounds.

Sommer tells the St. Paul Pioneer Press investigators believe Mitchell Fine used a rifle to kill the cats and a handgun to kill his wife and himself.

Lacey's Spring, AL: Sheriff Franklin: Hagood Lived And Died In Fear

LACEY’S SPRING, Ala. (WHNT) – A Valentine’s Day love story has apparently turned into homicide. A Morgan County woman, who should have been celebrating her wedding anniversary, was instead found dead in her home this morning. Sheriff’s investigators say her ex-husband is the primary suspect in her death.

The body of 46-year-old Stacey Hagood was found in the home she shared with her ex-husband, Rodney Hagood, on River Loop Road late this morning by her daughter. Morgan County Sheriff Ana Franklin declined to say how she died, but she says the death was homicide.

“This is a case of domestic violence, on-going domestic violence, has been throughout the years,” Sheriff Franklin told reporters Thursday morning.

Stacey Hagood was last seen alive at around 7 PM Wednesday night by her daughter, who discovered her mother’s body when she returned home just before 11 AM Thursday morning. It’s an address sheriff’s deputies are quite familiar with, they’ve been there many times. In fact, deputies were called to the home Tuesday night on another domestic violence call.

The Hagoods were married on Valentines Day a number of years ago, but had divorced. Rodney Hagood had moved back in with his wife, but their neighbors say there was always trouble.

“They were always into it, you know. Good people, she was a great person, give you the shirt off her back. But Hagood, he was always into something. There was always cops over there, couldn’t ever tell what was going to go on from one day to the next. He’d be in jail then out of jail, and you’d know when he got back because they’d be argueing, and then he’d be on the loose out here asking for rides and wanting you to do something, borrow money. Other than that, they were real good people,” JD Atchley, who lives next door to the Hagoods told WHNT News 19.

Sheriff Franklin says Mrs. Hagood had filed for protection orders on a number of occasions, but never followed through, or failed to show up in court, apparently due to threats of additional violence. Franklin says Mrs. Hagood died as she had lived much of her live, in fear.

“I will tell you that from interviewing the family members, none of them were surprised that this happened. They were waiting for the day this would happen. That’s a terrible situation to live in. So my heart goes out to this family, and to the family of the suspect. It is just a terrible situation,” Sheriff Franklin said.

Boynton Beach, FL: Police: Florida mom forced to watch estranged husband kill their sons

A South Florida man strangled his two young sons with a rope at his estranged wife’s house and then used a gun to shoot one of the boys several times before he shot himself to death, authorities said Saturday afternoon.

Police say Isidro Zavala, 45, early Saturday went to the Boynton Beach home of his wife with the intention of killing her and their children, Eduardo Zavala, 12, and Mario Zavala, 11.

At the crime scene, detectives found a blue bag with a second firearm, extra ammunition, duct tape, cutting shears and a note addressed to Zavala's oldest son, who was not at the residence during the killings, police said.

Isidro Zavala carried out his plan, but with an exception: He spared his wife, Victoria Flores Zavala, 36, so that she could suffer, police said.

“What Mrs. Zavala had to go through -- watch her children killed before her -- is probably the most horrific thing you could ever imagine, at least for me,” said Boynton Beach Police Chief G. Matthew Immler, saying that he himself is a parent.

The motive for the killing "is just speculation at this point," Immler said.

Victoria Flores Zavala contacted police, who arrived at her house in the 400 block of Southwest Eighth Avenue about 1:50 a.m. Saturday.

Officers found one child dead in a back screened patio area. A second child was found dead in the kitchen dining room area. Officers found Isidro Zavala’s body in the kitchen, police said.

Victoria Zavala said that her husband killed their children, police said. She said she and her husband had been separated and that he no longer lived in the house.

She told detectives that she was watching TV when she heard commotion in the house, went to check on her children and saw Isidro Zavala choking one of his sons, police said.

Then he killed them. Mario was the boy who was shot repeatedly, police said. The mother had tried to stop her spouse.

“She tried fighting him off and begged him to kill her and not the children,” Boynton Beach police spokeswoman Stephanie Slater said in a press release. “He told her she was going to stay alive and suffer the loss of them.”

Detectives obtained a warrant to search the house, as well as a house in the 1100 block of Southeast Third Street, where Isidro Zavala had been living, police said.

The Zavalas have a 19-year-old son who does not live with his family and was not there when the killings occurred, police said. The note found at the crime scene addressed to him said something to the effect that "he was a good son," police said.

Detectives have called the state Department of Children and Families to investigate. “It should be noted that there is no history of reports of domestic violence or abuse noted at the house,” Slater said.

The Zavala couple married in 1993, records show. In 1999, the pair signed a $73,700 mortgage on the home where the killings occurred, Palm Beach County records show.

In October last year, Victoria Flores Zavala filed for divorce from her husband in Palm Beach County, a case that records showed was still listed as pending.

Immler called Saturday's case "an unusually brutal type of murder," but said such murder-suicide cases unfortunately have been known to happen.

"And certainly I’ve seen it over the years of being a police officer, that there are mentally disturbed people out there who commit these types against their own family members, against their own loved ones," he said.

The police chief turned his attention to the surviving Zavalas.

"Hopefully, as time passes, perhaps their wounds will heal. I doubt it," he said. "You know, I don’t believe you could ever recover from something like this.

"Hopefully, the surviving Zavalas can get the help they need and somehow go on with life."

Columbus, OH: Man held for allegedly stabbing wife to death

Police said they were trying to figure out why a couple, who seemed happy to neighbors, would end up with the 72-year-old husband stabbing his wife to death in their North Side home last night.

Leif H. Mortensen called 911 about 2:30 p.m. yesterday and told a dispatcher that his wife, Margaret R. Mortensen, 74, was dead in the kitchen of their North Side home, 4930 Kingpin Dr., Columbus police homicide Sgt. Christ Holzhauser said.

Mortensen, who was charged with murder last night, told the dispatcher that after stabbing his wife he tried to cut his own throat, Holzhauser said he was taken to Riverside Methodist Hospital in critical condition, but last night his wounds were said not to be life-threatening.The 911 dispatcher was able to keep Mortensen on the phone almost until police arrived.

He came outside the house with wounds in his neck and throat.

“We don’t have any indication as to why this individual did this,” Holzhauser said. “Even speaking with one of the family members, they’re surprised by the event.”

Mortensen gave little explanation to the 911 dispatcher as to why he would stab his wife, other than saying “there wasn’t a problem between him and her,” Holzhauser said.

Mortensen also said that he had never tried to kill himself before, Holzhauser said.

Neighbors in the quiet, 1990s subdivision south of the Minerva Lake Golf Course were stunned to hear what happened involving the friendly couple they saw heading to church and doing yard work.

“In this crazy world, they were normal,” said Vicki Kovarik, who lives next door.

The Mortensens bought the 1,351-square-foot home in 2008.

Pete Miller said he would see the couple out and about.

“They were always waving. They seemed so nice,” Miller said. “It’s a shame.”

Jane Mowrer said the couple seemed healthy and got along well. She never heard any problems between the husband and wife.

“I envied them, because I’m not married, and they seemed so cute,” she said. “You never know.”The death is the 10th homicide of the year in Columbus, police said.

Jennings, MO: Boy in Jennings sees mother stabbed to death, runs to neighbor for help

JENNINGS • Don Moore got the news about his daughter’s death in a horrible way.

He called Sophia Moore’s cellphone, and the boyfriend she had recently broken up with answered. Moore asked to speak with his daughter.

“He said ‘Well, Sophia is dead. I killed her. She’s laying in a pool of blood. You never liked me anyway,’ ” Don Moore said, describing the brief conversation he had late Tuesday with Calvin Campbell II.

Campbell turned himself in at the Jennings Police Station about 1:30 a.m. Wednesday and confessed to killing Moore, 28, St. Louis County Officer Randy Vaughn said. Campbell, 32, was charged with second-degree murder and armed criminal action. He was jailed in St. Louis County without bail.

But Don Moore said that before Campbell’s confession he tormented his victim’s relatives by boasting of the slaying. He took her car and her phone and broke the news of her death and his role in it to whomever called. Don Moore said Campbell went as far as calling Sophia Moore’s grandmother to tell her that Sophia, the mother of two, was dead at his hands.

“It’s just devastating,” Don Moore said. “How could you tell a grandmother something like that?”

Police were summoned to Moore’s home by neighbors Jovonah Burks and Melinda Roberts. The two said Wednesday that they had answered a banging at their door Tuesday night and opened it to find Moore’s 9-year-old son on their doorstep.

“Help me!” Burks remembers him screaming. “He just killed my momma.”

The boy told Burks, 21, and her mother, Roberts, 51, that an attacker had stormed into his home in the 9400 block of Dawn Court. The boy said he had escaped out a window while the man stabbed his mother to death. He didn’t know whether his 8-year-old brother had gotten out.

“He grabbed me so tight and said, ‘Help me, please help me. What are we going to do without my momma? Where are we going to go?’ ” Roberts recalled Wednesday.

Police said Sophia Moore died of stab wounds to her chest. They say she had kicked Campbell out of the house the week before. Tuesday night, they say, he came back angry.

They say Campbell had pounded on the door to get in, then punched Moore in the face. He grabbed a kitchen knife and stabbed Moore as she tried to escape out a back kitchen window, police said. Her sons were unharmed, authorities said.

Campbell’s criminal history includes convictions in St. Louis city and county for unlawful use of a weapon, marijuana possession, misdemeanor assault, domestic assault and drug trafficking.

According to the Missouri Department of Corrections, Campbell served two years of probation for an October 2006 marijuana possession conviction and went to prison for 3½ months in 2009 after pleading guilty to unlawful use of a weapon. He then returned to prison for six months in 2011 for a probation violation. Court records say he also served 63 days in jail for two misdemeanor counts of assault.

After the attack, Roberts said, police put both boys in a patrol car until their father arrived. He took them away before they could see authorities carry their mother’s body out of the home.

“All I could think was how tight he had grabbed me begging for help,” Roberts said. “It broke my heart.”

Don Moore said his grandsons were getting counseling for the ordeal. “I don’t know the long-term effect it’s going to have on them,” he said.

Garrison, MD: Woman killed in domestic dispute at Garrison home

A woman was found killed and two small children located unharmed in Garrison late Tuesday when a Baltimore County Police tactical unit forced its way into a home following a call about a possible domestic dispute.

Katie Hadel, 33, had been stabbed multiple times, and was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

A suspect, Jeffrey Michael Shiflett, also 33, of Annapolis, who had been in a previous relationship with Hadel, was located at 11:02 a.m. Wednesday walking along a road in Reisterstown, and taken into custody without incident, police said.

Police identified Shiflett early Thursday morning. He has been charged with first-degree murder and is being held without bail at the Baltimore County Detention Center, police said. The suspect is not Hadel's husband, police said.

Officers responded to the home in the unit block of Wellhaven Circle — near the McDonogh School — at 10:09 p.m. after receiving the call. They knocked on the door but received no answer, said Lt. Rob McCullough, a police spokesman.

Hearing motion inside, officers called in a special tactical unit, which then forced its way in, McCullough said.

Inside, officers located the dead woman and the two small children, who appeared physically unharmed, McCullough said.

"It appeared the suspect had left the location prior to our arrival," McCullough said.

The 911 call had been placed by a neighbor. Police have not confirmed the ages of the two children who were in the home. They have also not explained the status or type of relationship between Hadel and Shiflett.

"This is still an ongoing investigation so we are not ready yet to provide details about the relationships of the people involved here," said Elise Armacost, a police spokeswoman, on Wednesday.

Homicide detectives are investigating the case.

Red Springs, NC: Two dead, 2 hurt in shootings

RED SPRINGS — Investigators are trying to determine today what led to the shooting deaths of two women during an apparent domestic dispute Wednesday evening at a home near Red Springs, according to Robeson County Sheriff Kenneth Sealey. Two men were injured, one of whom was shot and the other severely beaten.

According to Sealey, the Sheriff’s Office received a call from the home of Kathy Bullard, 59, of 12156 N.C. 211 West, about two miles east of Red Springs, at about 5:30 p.m. Sealey said the caller, Kendra Matteson, 24, said that her husband, 31-year-old Joseph Matteson, was outside the home with a handgun and was threatening to kill her. She called back a few minutes later and said shots had been fired, he said.

When deputies arrived at the home, they found Joseph Matteson’s mother, 55-year-old Donna Matteson, shot to death and lying in the front yard, Sealey said. Bullard was found shot dead inside her home, he said.

According to Sealey, Bullard’s son, 28-year-old Mark Anthony Bullard, was found shot inside the home, and Joseph Matteson was found badly beaten and lying beside the road. Both men were taken to Southeastern Regional Medical Center by ambulance and later airlifted to Chapel Hill, Sealey said.

Sealey said a 9-year-old child was found inside a car outside of the home and a 1-year-old was inside the home in a crib. He said both children were Kendra’s.

“We’re trying to find out which one did the shooting,” he said. “We’re trying to determine what did happen, but we think it was a domestic.”

Sealey said that Kendra had “left” Joseph and their home at 2675 Calloway Road in Raeford, and had been staying with Bullard for a few days. He said that he was told that Kendra and Mark Anthony Bullard used to date.

Sealey said information was sketchy this morning, and the Sheriff’s Office was releasing all the information it could.

Lake Worth, FL: Gay couple found shot to death in Lake Worth home

LAKE WORTH, Fla. —A gay couple whose relationship was coming to an end was found dead in an apparent murder-suicide in Lake Worth, deputies said.

Leopold Azplazu, 32, and Gabriel Ferrarotti, 37, were found shot to death Wednesday afternoon. The home is in the 100 block of South Lakeside Drive.


The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office said it appears Azplazu shot and killed Ferrarotti before turning the gun on himself.

Neighbors said the two had been a couple for 11 years, but Ferrarotti broke up with Azplazu on Tuesday night.

"Things weren't working out, and Gaby had asked Leo to move out," said neighbor and friend, Dee Weeks. "I guess this is the result of Leo not wanting to leave."

Weeks is shocked at what happened, saying the two men were great friends and great neighbors.
Neighbor Bill Denton echoed Weeks' feelings, saying the two men would give their shirts off their backs to a friend in need.

"It bummed me out because now I know I'm not going to be getting up in the morning and saying hello to Leo and Gabriel," said Denton. "That's never going to happen again."