11-year old Mississippi boy killed in murder/suicide by mentally ill father

Andrew Loyd, age 11

11-year old Andrew Loyd was shot three times by his father, Billy Loyd, Jr., in his home in Farmington Mississippi, before the father shot and killed himself.  Andrew later died in the hospital.

Six months ago, Andrew was held hostage, at gunpoint, by his father during a police standoff.  Billy Loyd had also served time in a mental institution.

Why, then, was the father allowed to own guns, and why was Andrew allowed to be anywhere near his father.

The father was also having economic problems.

A news video.

From an article:

Authorities say Loyd had posted on Facebook that he was in financial trouble, feared he would be evicted and his son taken from him. Loyd left funeral instructions and asked any reader to contact authorities.

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Two-thirds of U.S. adolescents experience uncontrolled anger

According to a recent study, two-thirds of American adolescents experience uncontrolled anger where they threaten violence.  From an article:

Nearly two-thirds of U.S. adolescents have experienced an anger attack that involved threatening violence, destroying property or engaging in violence toward others at some point in their lives. These severe attacks of uncontrollable anger are much more common among adolescents than previously recognized, a new study led by researchers from Harvard Medical School finds.

The study, based on the National Comorbidity Survey Replication Adolescent Supplement, a national face-to-face household survey of 10,148 U.S. adolescents, found that nearly two-thirds of adolescents in the U.S. have a history of anger attacks. It also found that one in 12 young people -- close to six million adolescents -- meet criteria for a diagnosis of Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED), a syndrome characterized by persistent uncontrollable anger attacks not accounted for by other mental disorders.

The results were published July 2 in Archives of General Psychiatry.

Please keep in mind that, according to another study, one-third of homes with children also have guns in the home.  42% of those keep at least one gun unlocked.  14% keep at least one gun loaded and unlocked.  See HERE for a revealing graphic showing these and other statistics, and how gun owners underestimate the danger.

What happens whey you have a home with an unlocked gun and a child with uncontrolled anger who threatens violence?

Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.

2nd-Grade boy brings cocked and loaded gun to school in Arkansas to play Cowboys and Indians

An 8-year old boy brought a cocked and loaded .22-caliber revolver to school with him in Little Rock, Arkansas, showing it off to a friend and apparently wanting to play "Cowboys and Indians."

From the article:

Authorities in Little Rock say a second-grader at Daisy Bates Elementary School is recommended for expulsion after bringing a cocked and loaded pistol to school to show a friend.

The Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department said Thursday that the 8-year-old boy had the gun in his backpack and showed it to a friend, who alerted a teacher.

The boy, who is not being named because of his age, told a sheriff’s deputy he had hoped to play cowboys and Indians with the .22-caliber revolver.

The investigative report says the boy’s father was shaken and told deputies the pistol should have been in a locked gun cabinet.

From a related article:

"All him and his brothers have been taught... that's a dangerous thing and it's nothing to play with," said Young.

She said, "It's a situation we've all trained our kids, grand kids to be aware and it's sad that they have to be aware."

The student could face expulsion, but no criminal charges as deputies say you have to be 10-years-old to be charged with a felony in the state.  The parents could still face criminal charges.

The child told deputies he wanted to play cowboys and Indians and show his friend the gun.  He said he was sorry he brought it to class.

The boy's father told deputies the .22 revolver was supposed to be locked up and he wasn't sure how the child got his hands on the gun.

Deputies say the child has Asperger Syndrome and did not realize the severity of the offense.

Roush said, "We applaud the student for doing the right thing and telling an adult what he had seen and what he had suspected."

She said they are planning a gun safety assembly at the school and reminded parents to check backpacks before they leave the house.

Apparently training a child in gun safety wasn't enough to keep him from doing this, nor, apparently, locking it up.  And as if having a gun in the home wasn't dangerous enough, this home had a child with Asperger's Syndrome!

Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.

17-year old Utah boy with Down's almost shot because of toy gun

Police in Clinton, Utah spotted a shadowy figure with a gun late at night.  He didn't respond to verbal commands, and nearly got shot before they managed to see the tiny red tip at the end of the toy gun he was holding.  The boy turned out to have Down's Syndrome and had gotten out of his home late at night.

From the article:

"I saw someone crouched by the van," Benedict said. "At that time, the deputy I was training stated that she saw a gun."

They pulled around for a closer look, from about a couple dozen yards away.

"As I flipped around, I did see a gentleman crouched down by the van in a tactical position, and he was pointing a gun," Benedict said. The officers had to be careful and their training kicked in.

"I called out the location, asked for additional units," Benedict said.

Then the teen turned and pointed the gun toward the officers. As officers pulled their weapons, calling for the boy to drop his, Benedict said the teen just turned around, keeping the gun at his side.

It was a standoff for a few seconds. "As he was walking away, we were closing the distance, giving verbal commands to drop the weapon," Benedict said.

But it wasn't until the officers got much closer that they could see the 17-year-old was holding a plastic toy gun with an orange tip and that he had Down syndrome.
....
Still, toy or not, deputies said in the dark it all seems very real and dangerous. "(What was) going through my mind is that this was a threat to mine and my partner’s lives," Benedict recalled.

Police say parents need to be aware that those real-looking guns, even the ones with orange tips, can be dangerous, especially since some criminals have painted orange tips on their real weapons.

The teen’s mother said the boy loves the police and was playing “policeman.”

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12-year old girl and mother shot and killed in Mississippi

Pieper Niolon, age 12

A 12-year old girl, Pieper Niolon, and her mother, Jan Niolon, were found shot to death in Ocean Springs, Mississippi.  The girl's father, Thomas Niolon, is suspected in the shooting, but has since been found dead after an apparent self-induced overdose on pills.  The handgun used in the shooting has been recovered and is being tested.

From an article:

Jan Niolon was treasurer of the Ocean Springs Education Foundation and an advocate for statewide education issues, particularly those concerning dyslexia.

Pieper was a seventh-grader at Ocean Springs Middle School who left behind classmates who adored her individualism and often asked her advice in tough situations.

Pieper was on the school's varsity swim team and a member of Biloxi's elite swim team. She was thought of as an exceptional athlete. Jan Niolon was known as an adoring and devoted mother.
....
Neighbors reported that Thomas Niolon had peripheral neuropathy -- damage to nerves of the peripheral nervous system -- and had mainly kept to himself over the past 5 years.

From a related article:

"She was a model student," Fletcher said. "She had the grades, positive outlook, drive and determination. I'm sure her mother helped her learn those qualities. They both wanted to make the community a better place as a whole."

Fletcher said she collapsed when she was informed Pieper and Jan Niolon were gone.
"I just broke down," Fletcher said. "I tried to remember what was the last thing I said to her and I couldn't. I thought it would be tough to never see her smile again. Her smile was infectious."
....
Pieper's classmates Shae Pisarich, 12, and Sara Thomas, 12, agreed that Pieper has a smile that would light up the darkest of times.

"She just always knew what to do and how to handle any situation," Sara said. "She was the one we went to when we had a problem and she always knew how to fix it."

"And she never cared what other people thought," Shae said. "If someone didn't like something about her, she didn't let it get her down."

(another related site).

Three small children shot by mother in murder/suicide in Missouri

(left to right) Samantha (6), Kate (3), and Lauren (8) Adewunmi

A stay-at home mother in Bourbon, Montana, Christine Adewunmi, was described as very dedicated, busy, and loving toward her three daughters.  But when she and her three young daughters were found shot to death on a ranch and resort in Montana, it became clear that she had shot them and herself in a murder/suicide.

She shot each of her daughters once, fatally, and then herself.  Lauren, Samantha, and Kate were 8, 6, and 3 years old, respectively.  The father had reported them missing.

From an article (see also for a statement from the family):

A missing person's report filed by the husband and father of the victims details Christine Adewunmi's battle with mental illness. It paints a troubled mental history for the 37-year-old mother.  

Investigators say Christine shot her three girls, 8-year-old Lauren, 6-year-old Samantha, and 3-year-old Kate, before taking her own life. Their bodies were discovered Saturday at a campground outside of Bourbon, Missouri.  

The coroner says all four victims had a single gunshot to the head, from a nine millimeter handgun. The coroner believes the victims died sometime Friday afternoon, but weren't discovered until Saturday.  

It was recently that Adewunmi was battling problems with her mental health. According to a missing persons report filed by her husband Friday evening, the wife and mother had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and was dealing with depression.  

Her husband also cited two other occasions in recent weeks when Christine disappeared with the kids. It happened as recently as last Tuesday.  

In the police report, the husband and father also called his wife suicidal, and believed she had been searching for ways to kill herself on the internet.  

The husband told police he took his wife, to Mercy Hospital to be evaluated on Thursday. Christine told her sister she was planning to admit herself for treatment on Friday. 

If the mother was known to be bipolar, depressed, and suicidal, why did they have a gun in the home?

(a related video)

9-year old Downs Syndrome boy gets gun under bed and shoots his cousin

A 9-year old boy with Downs Syndrome, and his mother, from Kentucky were visiting the boy's 76-year old uncle and 16-year old male cousin in St. Petersburg, Florida.  That's when the 9-year old found a loaded, unsecured .45-caliber Glock handgun and pointed it at his older cousin, then pulled the trigger, injuring the teen in the hand and neck.  Two assault rifles, and AK-47 and an AR-15, were also unsecured under the bed.

From the article:

A 76-year-old father was the owner of a gun that was used on his teenage son by a 9-year-old cousin Saturday, according to police.

The victim, 16-year-old Anas Jaber of 817 85th Ave. N, spent a night in the hospital after he was shot in the hand and the neck with a .45-caliber Glock pistol. Detectives will turn over the findings of their investigation to the Pinellas-Pasco State Attorney's Office this week, police spokesman Mike Puetz said.

No arrests have been made.

According to Puetz, three weapons — the pistol, an AK-47-style rifle and an AR-15-type rifle — were kept in the home under the bed of the father, Jaber Mohammed Jaber. Police confiscated the weapons, though the elder Jaber was legally allowed to own the weapons.

It was unclear how the 9-year-old boy, who was visiting with his mother from Kentucky, got ahold of the pistol. According to a police report, Anas Jaber was playing video games in the home about 3 p.m. Saturday when he noticed that his cousin was pointing a gun at him. The teen raised his left hand and told his cousin to put the gun down when it went off.

A bullet passed through Anas Jaber's hand and went into his neck, police said. He was taken to Bayfront Medical Center and released after being treated for superficial wounds.

Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.

14-year old boy accidentally shot by 15-year old brother, both autistic

Damian Rolle, age 14

14-year old Damian Rolle had just gotten home from school and was with his 15-year old brother, Devonta in their Englewood neighborhood home in Chicago.  Somehow, Devonta had gotten hold of an unsecured, loaded handgun and tried to show it to his younger brother.  The gun was accidentally fired it at Damian, fatally injuring him in the chest. 

Both boys are autistic.  Their mother was still at work.  They were being watched by an older sister.  At least one other child was present at the time.

The .22-caliber gun was thrown out the third-story window after the shooting, but was retrieved by police.

From the article:

The mother of the two children, Bettey Grant, 38, said Tuesday night outside the hospital that she had no idea how her son came to possess a gun.

“There was no gun in my house that I know,” she said before being comforted by a group of family members, who later joined hands in prayer.

The victim’s uncle, Anthony Smith, said he believed the shooting was an accident.

“I truly believe it was just a serious mistake,” he said. “It really had to be a mistake.”

Smith described Rolle as a “good boy,’’ who was honest. Smith said Rolle is one of four kids who live in the home.

“They’re just little boys trying to find their way without a father,’’ Smith said of his relatives.

(A related article and video)

It is unknown where the gun came from, as it apparently wasn't from the home.  Their mother had apparently searched the home many times in the past, fearing that something like this might happen.

“My sister didn’t have weapons in her house. She didn’t even have a knife in their house because [he] had autism,” [the boys' aunt] Smith said.

She knew that the boys fought from time to time, but with sticks or bottles - not guns.

Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.

Babysitter saves 5-year old boy from potential shooter

A babysitter was watching a 5-year old boy near Lakeway, Texas, when a woman burst into the home with a .38 pistol, stating that she wanted to kill the boy and his parents because they were the "antichrist." But the babysitter managed to get the gun away from the woman and scare her away.

From the article:

Cops say that the 47-year-old Straley went into her neighbor’s home on Aria Drive on January 27 and confronted the child’s babysitter with a .38 caliber pistol. The boy’s parents weren’t home. Straley threatened the babysitter with the pistol and demanded that she tell her where the boy’s mother was.

But the quick thinking and brave babysitter caught the crazed woman off guard and jumped up and grabbed the gun from Straley’s hand. Straley took off on foot to another neighbor’s home where she reportedly spilled the beans about her plot to kill the family.

Lakeway police were called. Cops say she later confessed the bizarre plot to them as well. 

A neighbor called into KLBJ’s Jeff Ward Show and said that Straley was a friend of the boy’s family. She also told Ward that Straley had been taken to Fort Worth by her family.

Police have now charged her with burglary, but there is a problem. They don’t know where Straley is. An arrest warrant has been issued.

Now that's a great babysitter!!

Two children held hostage at gunpoint by father in car chase

A male and his two sons were driving on Interstate 15 in Utah when an officer tried to pull him over for a traffic infraction. What happened next was hours of police chase and hostage situation, where the man held his two sons, one aged 6 or 7, the other a high schooler, hostage at gunpoint, sometimes pointing the gun at his own head.

From the articles HERE and HERE:

This incident began just before 11 a.m. Monday when a La Verkin police officer attempted to stop a car for a traffic infraction. Corporal Todd Johnson of the Utah Highway Patrol said that when the vehicle refused to yield, a chase ensued....

In essence, from what is streaming live on County Dispatch, the suspect is apparently known to have emotional issues, may be paranoid that his ex-wife is going to take his children away from him, but is said to be very attached to his children.

“The two children [were released] and then he surrendered and the three were taken into custody.”

Abbot said that the offender maintained contact with [the] negotiations team and they were able to talk him into peacefully surrendering himself around 8:30 p.m.

The children did not appear to be physically harmed and were taken into the custody of Child Protective Services. “Everything seems to be okay that way,” said Abbott.

The offender was arrested and transported to Purgatory Correctional Facility for booking. Abbott said that he would be charged on the traffic violation and evading arrest, with La Verkin Police Department as the arresting agency since they were involved in the incident’s inception.

No determination has been made as to the offender’s mental condition or other factors triggering the day’s episode. Abbot said of investigators developing the case, “they’ll work through all that.”

Luckily, no one was injured.

15-year old autistic boy shot to death by police in Illinois

Stephon Watts, age 15

15-year old Stephon Watts, of Calumet City, Illinois (a suburb of Chicago) was asked by his father to get off a computer. The boy resisted, and having had numerous problems with the boy that required police intervention, the father called the police again. This time, though, the boy attacked the police with a knife and was shot to death.

From the article:

Calumet City Police Chief Edward Gilmore said officers had been to the home 12 times since June 2010. Ten of those times, he said, were in regards to the boy.

Family members said the teen charged at one of the officers with a butter knife and was shot twice in the head by police.

Gilmore disputed the family's account, saying he believed the teen was shot in the torso after he lashed out at one of the officers with a kitchen knife, not a butter knife. The offer was cut in the left forearm, he said.

The chief said his officers acted in self defense. But Watts' family said shooting the boy was too severe.

"They knew how he was," said the teen's uncle, Wayne Watts, referring to the boy's autism. "They could have [used their Taser] on him."

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