Jasmine Abbott

Jasmine Abbott

Mother, 3 children shot to death

January 21, 2011

AUSTIN, Ind. (WDRB Fox 41)--A mother and her three children were found dead inside their Indiana home on Friday. Police say they all suffered gunshot wounds to the head--but police are not looking for any suspects.

Police stop short of calling it a triple murder-suicide, but say they are focusing their investigation only on the four people found dead inside the home.

The small road seems oddly busy as curious people slow down to take a look at a house on New York Street in Austin, Indiana. Karen Barrett remembers the last conversation she had with 30-year-old Amanda Bennett, "Just 'Hi! How ya doin?', she laughed, just like she, you know, she was a happy go lucky person, she just 'good how are you!' I waved my hand and went on, ya know."

Roses were left behind on a car for the four people found dead inside the burned home in Austin, Indiana Friday. Officials say Amanda Bennett and her three children--14-year-old Jasmine, 9-year-old Katelynn, and Ryan, 4-years old, all died from gunshot wounds to the head.

It appears Amanda and Katelynn might have suffered smoke inhalation. Although it is unclear how the fire started.

Police are not looking for suspects, but will not say it is a triple murder-suicide. "The detectives are not ready to make any determinations or give any exact facts on what happened inside of the home," said Sergeant Jerry Goodin, with Indiana State Police.

Friends say there were signs of marital problems. "This past Sunday night we come home from church," said Barrett, "and there were two loads of cops here and the husband and wife I assume had a scuffle because that's what my niece said, that Jasmine had come to school talking about her mom and dad getting a divorce."

But other than that, Barrett says you would never know. "He'd get out and play basketball with the kids, she'd sit out on the porch and watch 'em play you'd never know there was any family trouble, never," said Barrett.

Police would not comment on any possible domestic problems. "That is part of our investigation so there are some things that we don't want to release," said Goodin.

Debra Davidson is a cook at Austin Elementary and says she'll never forget 9-year-old Katelynn. "She always gave me and one of the other cooks a hug every day," said Davidson.

The deaths are something many just cannot comprehend. "I can't understand it," said Barrett, "I just can't see it myself, Lord knows all about it."

"We owe this not only to the family, but the public," said Goodin, "and we're going to come to some answers and when we get those answers we'll release them."

Austin schools will have extra counselors at school on Monday.


See post for dear siblings Katelynn Bennett and Ryan Bennett.

Katelynn Bennett

Katelynn Bennett

Indiana woman killed her 3 children and herself, police say

January 25, 2011

An Indiana woman shot her three children and set the family's house on fire before turning the gun on herself, police said.

The bodies of the four were discovered Friday, when police in Austin, Indiana, responded to the home to conduct a welfare check.

"Upon arriving, the officer had to make a forced entry into the residence," Indiana State Police said Monday in a statement. "Once in the residence, he saw parts of the home had suffered recent fire damage and also located four deceased persons in the home."

The state police assisted with the investigation, which preliminarily concluded that 30-year-old Amanda Bennett shot the children -- 14-year-old Jasmine Abbott, 9-year-old Katelynn Bennett and 4-year-old Ryan Bennett -- before starting the fire and shooting herself.

"While the investigation remains open until autopsy reports are finalized, indications are this case is a tragic case of murder/suicide that claimed three innocent lives along with the suspect of the murders, Amanda Bennett," the police statement said.

All four apparently died from gunshot wounds to the head. Amanda Bennett and Katelynn Bennett also suffered smoke inhalation, police said.

The family's dog was also shot, but survived and was being treated at a veterinary clinic, authorities said.

Jasmine, the teenager, had made references to marital problems between her parents and a possible divorce, friend Karen Barrett told CNN affiliate WDRB.

Indiana State Police spokesman Sgt. Jerry Goodin told CNN that authorities examined online content as part of their investigation, including a posting purportedly from Amanda Bennett that blamed her husband, according to WDRB, saying, "You got what you wanted, no wife and no kids."

However, the reasons for the shootings remain unclear, Goodin said.

"The only person that knows the motive is Amanda," he said.

Austin is about 35 miles north of Louisville, Kentucky.


See post for dear siblings Jasmine Abbott and Ryan Bennett.

Ryan Bennett

Mom Shot 3 Kids, Started Fire, Before Killing Herself

January 25, 2011

AUSTIN, Ind. -- A southern Indiana woman shot her three children and the family dog before setting fire to her home and fatally shooting herself, investigators said Monday as somber classmates of the slain children returned to school three days after the bodies were found.

Indiana State Police said they believe Amanda Bennett, 30, carried out the triple murder-suicide at the family's home in the Scott County town of Austin, shooting her three children and herself in the head.

Her body and those of 14-year-old Jasmine Abbott, 9-year-old Katelynn Bennett and 4-year-old Ryan Bennett were found Friday in the partially burned home after worried relatives asked police to check on the family.

State police Sgt. Jerry Goodin said Monday in a statement that the killings were "a tragic case of murder/suicide that claimed three innocent lives" along with that of the youngsters' mother, the alleged assailant.

"After shooting the children, indications are Amanda Bennett started a fire in the home and then took her own life," Goodin said Monday in a statement.

Friends and neighbors told The Courier-Journal of Louisville, Ky., that Amanda Bennett was a factory worker along with her husband, who had been laid off since last spring and moved out about a month ago from the home about 35 miles north of Louisville, Ky.

Family friend Karen Barrett told WDRB-TV in Louisville that Amanda Bennett was in the midst of a divorce from her husband but that the family had seemed close.

"He'd get out and play basketball with the kids, she'd sit out on the porch and watch `em play. You'd never know there was any family trouble, never," Barrett said.

Goodin would not comment on any possible domestic problems. Police are looking into an Internet posting that may have been from Amanda that read, in part, "Time to take away the pain. This is what you wanted, no wife and no kids."

"That is part of our investigation, so there are some things that we don't want to release," he said.

Trooper Mark LaMaster said investigators are looking into whether Amanda Bennett may have posted comments on the Internet prior to the shootings that alluded to her intention to kill her children.

Preliminary death findings showed that Amanda and Katelynn Bennett died from a combination of gunshot wound to the head and smoke inhalation. The two other siblings died from a gunshot wound to the head, Goodin said.

The family dog was shot but was recovering Monday at a veterinary clinic in Scott County, police said.

A makeshift memorial set up on the front steps of the family's modular home included a flickering candle set surrounded by teddy bears and other animals left by relatives and neighbors. Two roses also were left on the windshield of a car parked in the driveway, WAVE-TV of Louisville reported.

Betty Hensley, who lives near the family, told the station that she's at a loss to understand the killings.

"Why, why -- I'm asking why? Why did this happen to these people? I mean these were good people, why did this happen? And I don't know. I couldn't tell you. I sure don't know," Hensley said.

Extra counselors were on hand Monday as students returned to school for the first time since word of the shootings was announced Friday evening. Jasmine Abbott was a freshman at Austin High School, Katelynn was a fourth-grader and Ryan was a preschool student.

Kenneth Kidd, the assistant superintendent of the Scott County School District, said the mood was generally somber Monday at the district schools where the siblings had attended classes.

Mother, pregnant with Ryan, with two sisters

"We still have a few rambunctious ones over there today, but mostly it's somber," Kidd told WDRB.

Austin High School Principal Sherman Smith told WAVE that counselors at the school worked Monday to try to comfort mourning students but obviously could not explain for them why the tragedy occurred.

"It's a grief we don't know how to prepare for," Smith said. "We deal with it the best we can. We know what we know and that's all we know. We don't have the answers for our kids."


See post for dear siblings Jasmine Abbott and  Katelynn Bennett.

Robin L. Everitt

Indiana State Police arrest stepson in double shooting

November 9, 2009

An argument among family members ended with one man dead and another injured following a double shooting Sunday three miles outside of Austin, Indiana.

Family members, who did not want to be interviewed, stood at the edge of a dark, desolate driveway Sunday evening as crime scene investigators combed over the home in the 3700 block of Bogardus Road, located just east of the city of Austin, Indiana.

Indiana State Police say 59-year old Robin L. Everitt was shot and killed following an argument with his stepson, Jason Uhlenbrock, 29. Neighbors say Uhlenbrock went to the home to visit his mother and Everitt but became angry after the two apparently told him he could not go deer hunting.

Investigators with Indiana State Police would not confirm those details.

During altercation, another man, whose identity could not be verified, was also shot in the abdomen, according to Sgt. Jerry Goodin, a spokesman for Indiana State Police Post in Sellersburg. That man, described as a friend of Everitt, was later flown to University Hospital in Louisville where he remained in stable condition late Sunday.

Uhlenbrock remains in the Scott County Jail charged with murder and attempted murder.

Also:

A heartbroken southern Indiana family wants the public to know what really happened this weekend when a man in Austin, Indiana was killed.

59-year-old Robin Everitt was shot to death Sunday afternoon in his home in Scott County.

The man's stepson is charged with the crime but the suspect's family says it’s an act of violence that goes much deeper than the police investigation.

A woman lost her husband to a gunshot wound and now her son is charged with killing him.

A close family friend says they don't know why this happened but they have an idea about what triggered the alleged act of violence.

Those who know 29-year-old Jason Uhlenbrock say this isn't the man they love.

They say his mug shot illustrates his state of mind. They tell WHAS11 that he is bi-polar and struggled with the illness for years.

They believe he was on his medication when he allegedly shot and killed his stepfather Robin Everitt and wounded Everitt’s friend at their home in Austin.

“The most difficult thing with bipolar disorder is accepting that you have the disorder it takes 10 to 30 years sometimes before they really accept it and do something about it,” said a psychiatrist who didn't treat Uhlenbrock but does treat those with bi-polar disorder.

He tells us what happens to the mind when those who are bi-polar stop taking their medication.

“It can cause impulsivity become very short tempered and explosive and on edge.”

Those who suffer from bi-polar disorder say it’s not always easy taking medication because your mind isn't working at a rapid pace.

“The medication brings you to a normal level but you miss that feeling because it helps you accomplish things it helps you focus on intricate things that you can get done very rapidly and you miss that.”

Molly Clouse also tells me she didn't like the public stigma that came from taking medication for a mental illness.

“If we don't have hope that life will get better it’s hard to stay on our medications.” Uhlenbrock's family and friends didn't want to be interviewed for this story but say they hope it helps others to think twice about not taking their medication.

National statistics show that 1 in 5 adults have a diagnosable mental illness.

The courts will have to decide if Uhlenbrock is mentally competent to stand trial.

Indiana State Police say that when the shooting happened Monrday there didn't appear to be any signs of an argument.

Jacob Lord

Jacob Lord

Man To Be Arraigned In 2-Year-Old's Slaying

November 2, 2009

SELLERSBURG, Ind. -- An Indiana man charged with killing his ex-girlfriend's 2-year-old son will be arraigned Monday.

Police say Jacob Lord was injured after his mother dropped him off at Hensley's apartment. Lord's mother told WLKY News the boy came home covered in bruises from head-to-toe.

Lord’s mother said Hensley told her the boy had fallen from a bed. Hensley later told the boy’s mother he fell down the stairs and hit his head on the chair.

Lord's mother said her son was napping at home when he had a seizure. She brought the toddler to Scott Memorial Hospital with serious injuries on Wednesday.  He was later taken to Kosair Children’s Hospital in Louisville, where he died Wednesday evening.

An autopsy performed Thursday in Louisville determined Lord died of an inflicted closed head injury.  Hensley, an ex-boyfriend of Lord’s mother, was arrested at home Friday afternoon in Austin, Ind. on murder and felony battery charges. He was taken to the Scott County Jail and is awaiting his first court appearance.

"He seemed nice in front of everybody else, but every time my grandson would come over and stay with him by himself he always got hurt,” said Lord’s grandmother Joyce Bowling.

The case is still under investigation.

"As we go through this investigation, if we find anybody else that bears responsibility to the crime that's happened to this child, then we're going to be presenting to those charges to the prosecutor's office and we're going to be arresting those people too,” said ISP Sgt. Jerry Goodin.

Lorraine Cooper

Man Shot Wife, Self

September 28, 2007

AUSTIN — An autopsy performed Thursday morning on the two bodies found in a residence in Austin early Wednesday evening showed the deaths are a result of a murder-suicide.

The Kentucky Medical Examiner’s Office identified the bodies as those of Boyd Cooper, 52, and Lorraine Cooper, 50.

"They were husband and wife and lived at the 924 Pennsylvania Ave. address in Austin where their bodies were located," Sgt. Jerry Goodin of the Indiana State Police said in a news release.

"The Kentucky Medical Examiner’s Office came to the conclusion that both Boyd and Lorraine Cooper died of gunshot wounds," Goodin added. "It is believed that they had been inside the home for approximately one to two weeks before they were found."

Indiana State Police detectives said they believe Boyd Cooper shot and killed Lorraine Cooper and then turned the gun on himself.

Officers from the Austin Police Department responded to to the Coopers’ home in reference to a welfare check at the residence around 5:26 p.m. Wednesday. They found the the bodies after forcing their way in to the home.