IA - Tyler, Sarah, and Lula Schmidt Killed at Maquoketa Caves State Park Campsite, 2022 *killer dead*

[RickshawFan]

The theory that the shooter meant to target his parents makes sense to me, but I feel like 75 yards is quite a distance to be off. Especially when his own campsite had two tents close together, it would be hard to confuse it with a single tent site, if it was as light as it seems to have been. Of course, if he was having some kind of issue or episode, that might not even matter.

I grew up visiting Maquoketa Caves and still live somewhat close. It is hard to wrap my mind around this senseless violence in such a beautiful, peaceful spot.

What if he went in one side of the bathroom, and came out the other because he got his direction mixed up? We need the site numbers!

 

[realanastasia]

Thirdly the gun was in a secured container, if the parents were concerned something illtoward may happen due to their son's condition they would have secured it even more just to make sure that he wouldn't get the firearm.

Most recent reports are that the shooter had a self-constructed gun and thats what he used in this incident.

 

[deadfoot13]

I'm sorry I do have to respectfully disagree. First of all emergencies can happen anytime so a cellphone is vey usefull in that instance. Some people may think others have cellphones and someone will call in that emergency but they may not also thinking someone else is calling and it tuns into a cycle of no help. Its happened even in public places. Recently there was a case of a young woman being sexually assaulted in the middle of the day in a public park with hundreds of people in that park and this is exacly what happened, sadly. The young woman's mother had to chase the suspect away. No one stepped in to help her. This kind of thing happens all the time. After being chased away the suspect was caught at his home by LE sometime later that day. As for the the father knocking on the bathroom stall door I still see it as unusual. Why was the father looking for the suspect in the first place? Let him come back to the tent and he can talk to him at that time. In the original post it didn't say there was an emergency that the father had to talk to the Sherwin right away, what was the rush to speak to him? Because its such a horrible incident that has happened a family is dead with a 9 year old surviving son these aspects have to be looked at nothing should be overlooked.

Not discounting the seriousness of the matter with my opinion as to the thoroughly mundane action of looking for someone in a bathroom at a public campground. Your response is very confusing.

Cellphones are certainly useful, but back in the 70s, 80s and most of the 90s, many of us survived camping trips with no thought of having a telephone at our disposal -- we even managed to find our way to places with paper maps and paid for the trip with a wallet carrying cash instead of cards. Most of the places I camp today don't even have a signal if I wanted to use the phone. I personally don't think it's strange to not carry a phone while camping so you can keep in touch with your party in an area that small.

I'm very confused as to the comparison of an assault at a public park to this particular tragedy at a campground, but you must see a correlation. Yes, bad things happen in public places and it's never a good thing.

Maybe the father was looking for the son because he wanted to know if his son wanted to go hiking or canoeing or did he want bacon or another cup of coffee before they pitched it. I've wandered up to the bathrooms to find my husband for any number of reasons including that he walked off with the lighter to start the grill or to tell him that I was going for a ride to buy more firewood. Could there be some nefarious reason that the father had to speak to the son at that very moment? Sure, nothing's ever out of the question, but I really don't see it as that unusual.

 

[realanastasia]

I don't know if we had this info already, but Cecilia Sherwin is the person who called 911 at 6:23 AM to report a homicide on the morning of the 22nd. The time she called and the times all the police units arrived are on the bottom of the second page here.

https://maquoketaia.com/wp-content/uploads/DailyCallReports/07.22.22.pdf

 

[RickshawFan]

Ghost guns, encrypted phones, his business... Maybe he was an international drug kingpin who shot the family for their computer so he could pay off his cartel creditors in time... Or maybe he was just a tech-savvy manchild whose parents indulged his every whim because he wowed them with what they saw as 'genius'.

I'm thinking manufacturing and distributing something like what Josh Duggar has just been imprisoned for. Maybe the paranoia and secrecy were justified?

 

[RickshawFan]

You don't need a 3d printer to make a ghost gun. One can buy all the parts you need in kit form at sites like this: Ghost Guns All the buyer needs to do is finish the pieces (sanding, bluing etc.) and assemble them.

Yes. See the Nancy Brophy case, just commpleted. There was a ghost gun... It wasn't used for the murder, but it factored heavily into her planning.

 

[RickshawFan]

While I would not suggest a fundraiser for them, I do think a certain degree of sympathy for the Sherwin parents is not out of place. In one morning out of absolutely nowhere, on what was supposed to be a happy family vacation, they not only lost their son but they found out he was a mass shooter who had killed an innocent family.

There's no evidence they considered it a "happy family vacation". Maybe the Sherwins were out of town because AOS was muttering about killing people, and they thought a change of scene....
They could have had warnings and red flags for years. I rather suspect they did, but so far, no info from LE, so that is speculation on my part.

 

[RickshawFan]

What is a ghost gun?

These untraceable firearms can be made at home with no background check or serial numbers, and officials say they're contributing to a rise in gun violence.

www.google.com

"Ghost guns are unregistered and untraceable homemade weapons that can be made with a 3D printer or assembled from a kit. According to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, such weapons are contributing to a rise in gun violence, reported CBS News' Jeff Pegues in February. The weapons can be produced for less than $200, though officials have put the average price at around $500."

Ghost Guns Aren't Hard To Make. New Laws Won't Restrict Them

www.google.com

See the recently concluded Nancy Brophy trial.

 

[WingsOverTX]

I don't know if we had this info already, but Cecilia Sherwin is the person who called 911 at 6:23 AM to report a homicide on the morning of the 22nd. The time she called and the times all the police units arrived are on the bottom of the second page here.

https://maquoketaia.com/wp-content/uploads/DailyCallReports/07.22.22.pdf

Great find! Thank you for sharing this.

 

[shotgun09]

I don't know if we had this info already, but Cecilia Sherwin is the person who called 911 at 6:23 AM to report a homicide on the morning of the 22nd. The time she called and the times all the police units arrived are on the bottom of the second page here.

https://maquoketaia.com/wp-content/uploads/DailyCallReports/07.22.22.pdf

Thanks for the info regarding CS calls to 911 and the responding times of LE arrival to the scene. Helps with a timeline. I wonder, what time did CS call the NE police for the welfare check on AS? How much time had passed since her initial call to 911.?
And did LE come across AS's body after a lengthy search? Or, was it fairly quick?

 

[WingsOverTX]

Thanks for the info regarding CS calls to 911 and the responding times of LE arrival to the scene. Helps with a timeline. I wonder, what time did CS call the NE police for the welfare check on AS? How much time had passed since her initial call to 911.?
And did LE come across AS's body after a lengthy search? Or, was it fairly quick?

"At about 6:23 a.m. Friday, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office and the DCI were called to Maquoketa Caves State Park on reports of a shooting at the park campground.

"About five hours after the triple-homicide was reported, law enforcement discovered the body of the suspected attacker, 23-year-old Anthony Orlando Sherwin of La Vista, Nebraska."

Suspect kills three at Caves park

A 9-year-old boy survived an attack that killed his mother, father, and 6-year-old sister at Maquoketa Caves State Park Friday, July 22.

www.maqnews.com

ETA: Later in the article it says: "Law enforcement flew a plane overhead to provide an aerial view of the park. That is when authorities found Sherwin’s dead body at about 11 a.m. Friday west of the campsite but still in the park."

 

[RickshawFan]

BBM

I camp a lot. Campgrounds aren't enormous, and there are limited places you would think to look for a person within a campground -- you've typically got one or more bathrooms, maybe a shower facility, a place to bring garbage and recycling, sometimes a shack for boating and lifeguard gear, a building to house equipment like lawn mowers, chainsaws, etc., maybe a common building for people to congregate and play games or a pavilion for picnicking, and the caretaker's quarters. It isn't illogical to think that if a member of your party isn't in the tent or your vehicle, then they're probably in the bathroom or shower. Almost every time I've camped within a formal campground I've experienced someone usually bellowing into the bathroom "Hey So-and-So, are you in there?" Last year I even inadvertently freaked a woman out when I yelled back that I was the only one in there, not realizing her young child was quietly standing at the sink waiting for me to finish peeing so I could turn on the water. Knocking on a stall door doesn't seem weird to me at all, nor does choosing that as a place to look for someone.

As soon as I reach any campsite, the first thing I do is lock my phone in the glovebox. Not everyone carries a phone when they camp.

IME Many campgrounds have, say 30-40 spots, but I have camped in some absolutely COLOSSAL campgrounds. Fish Creek Pond in NY has 355. So, let's not base a theory on generalized small campgrounds. 267 sites at Mesa Verde. Blackwoods at Acadia has 306.

However, Maquoteka happens to be smallish. You can consult the map posted a couple of times ^^^, so your points might still hold.

 

[shotgun09]

Thanks for the quick info Wings!!

 

[RickshawFan]

But the question arises why did he shoot three instead of two? I don't know how much daylight was at this time but he could see his victims if he shot all three of them and not two (his parents.) So IDK, although I haven't read all the threads yet so far so there could be a different set of circumstances that the family was killed under, sadly.

The recent other instance of someone getting shot and killed in a tent was in Malibu. Likely, he sat up and turned on his headlamp, lit up his silhouette, when he heard someone trying to get into his car.

Calif. Dad Fatally Shot in Tent in Front of Daughters, 2 and 4, on Camping Trip

Calif. Dad Fatally Shot in Front of Daughters While Camping

sports.yahoo.com

 

[shotgun09]

I am so relieved that the nine year old is alive, and physically not harmed, but soooo many questions I have as to how?

How did he survive gun shots in a tent, where the rest of his family lay slain?

According to AS's mother, the boy was able to describe the killer...wearing black.

Or, WAS he even in the tent, when it happened? Did he actually witness the entire shooting? Outside the tent? If so, what was he doing outside the tent at 6 am ish alone?

So many questions!!

 

[deadfoot13]

IME Many campgrounds have, say 30-40 spots, but I have camped in some absolutely COLOSSAL campgrounds. Fish Creek Pond in NY has 355. So, let's not base a theory on generalized small campgrounds. 267 sites at Mesa Verde. Blackwoods at Acadia has 306.

However, Maquoteka happens to be smallish. You can consult the map posted a couple of times ^^^, so your points might still hold.

I hear you, and have camped at Fish Creek/Rollins Pond many times, but my experience has pretty much been the same as far as people having no qualms about looking for members of their party in the bathroom/shower facilities. There's a larger area to look for someone if you don't find them in the bathroom/shower facilities, but you've still got a limited number of options as to where you'll most likely find them.

 

[5W's]

Not discounting the seriousness of the matter with my opinion as to the thoroughly mundane action of looking for someone in a bathroom at a public campground. Your response is very confusing.

Cellphones are certainly useful, but back in the 70s, 80s and most of the 90s, many of us survived camping trips with no thought of having a telephone at our disposal -- we even managed to find our way to places with paper maps and paid for the trip with a wallet carrying cash instead of cards. Most of the places I camp today don't even have a signal if I wanted to use the phone. I personally don't think it's strange to not carry a phone while camping so you can keep in touch with your party in an area that small.

I'm very confused as to the comparison of an assault at a public park to this particular tragedy at a campground, but you must see a correlation. Yes, bad things happen in public places and it's never a good thing.

Maybe the father was looking for the son because he wanted to know if his son wanted to go hiking or canoeing or did he want bacon or another cup of coffee before they pitched it. I've wandered up to the bathrooms to find my husband for any number of reasons including that he walked off with the lighter to start the grill or to tell him that I was going for a ride to buy more firewood. Could there be some nefarious reason that the father had to speak to the son at that very moment? Sure, nothing's ever out of the question, but I really don't see it as that unusual.

Anyways its the context of the reason that he would knock on the stall door, that was my point. If it was a context where the father is specifically worried about him and his actions then it is possibly unusual. If not then as you mentioned then its not. In my mind I wonder what the context was. As for the eighties and nineties nasty things did happen back then so if you were safe that's a good thing. Others weren't. The example I gave was that its better to have one's own phone with them as emergencies do occur and help can be gotten quickly. After the mother chased the man away she called 9-11. The police arrived quickly. All I'm saying is many times people just assume someone else will call 9-11. When in fact it hasn't happened. And nasty hings do happen in public so its better to have something such as a cellphone to get help rather than assuming it has been called. IMO its a matter of safety. Others may think nothing untoward or an emergency can ever happen to them. It just does only take one time gor a mishap to happen is all I'm saying. Anything that can help is valuable in the event of a life or death situation.

 

[darkstar105]

But the question arises why did he shoot three instead of two? I don't know how much daylight was at this time but he could see his victims if he shot all three of them and not two (his parents.) So IDK, although I haven't read all the threads yet so far so there could be a different set of circumstances that the family was killed under, sadly.

I'm in KC, like the previous poster, and I get up at 6 some mornings to play with my Merlin Bird ID app and see how many birds it hears. I can attest there is plenty of daylight at 6:20-ish a.m. outdoors.

 

[JosieMae]

Do we know the dimensions of the victims' tent? Our 4-person tents were always dome-shaped and about 4 feet high, (5 at most). It doesn't seem likely that a shooter could get any sort of aim inside a small dome tent. Doesn't it make more sense that the shooter was outside the tent. And standing as he fired into the tent? That scenario could also explain how the little boy was unharmed. Just random luck that he wasn't hit.

 

[fred&edna]

Do we know the dimensions of the victims' tent? Our 4-person tents were always dome-shaped and about 4 feet high, (5 at most). It doesn't seem likely that a shooter could get any sort of aim inside a small dome tent. Doesn't it make more sense that the shooter was outside the tent. And standing as he fired into the tent? That scenario could also explain how the little boy was unharmed. Just random luck that he wasn't hit.

That's possible. I suppose I'm puzzled that LE hasn't provided info if that's what occurred. But maybe I'm reading too much into the lack of explanation. Whatever happened it's incredibly heartbreaking for the 9 yr old.