TN - Eight people killed, Sumner County deaths linked, Apr 2019 *Arrest*

[Laughing]

Five people are killed at several homes in Sumner County, Tennessee with police searching for a suspect deemed to be 'armed and dangerous' said to be hiding in the woods


Multiple people are killed in Sumner County with police searching for a suspect | Daily Mail Online

 

[SuzDuJour]

Captured:
Suspect captured after 5 people found killed in 2 homes

 

[Kyshoegal]

I have a feeling mental illness may play a part in this, JMO.

 

[scapa]

I'm surprised that this horrific crime has received so little attention here when it's garnered quite a lot regionally and nationally. Seven are now dead, and an eight in critical condition, according to MSM. Here's an updated story with more info:

'Unprecedented' Sumner County slayings among the most deadly in state's recent history

 

[LadyL]

Some victims in "horrific" Tennessee killings ID'd as relatives of suspect.

TBI identified those killed as David Carl Cummins and Clara Jane Cummins, the suspect's parents; Charles Edward Hosale, his uncle; Rachel Dawn McGlothlin-Pee, whose relationship to him isn't clear; Rachel's 12-year-old daughter, Sapphire McGlothlin-Pee; and Rachel's mother, Marsha Elizabeth Nuckols. Another victim, Shirley B. Fehrle, was found in a separate home and has no known relationship to Cummins.

An eighth victim, another relative, remained hospitalized in critical condition.


Some victims in "horrific" Tennessee killings ID'd as relatives of suspect

 

[peapods]

I'm surprised that this horrific crime has received so little attention here when it's garnered quite a lot regionally and nationally. Seven are now dead, and an eight in critical condition, according to MSM. Here's an updated story with more info:

'Unprecedented' Sumner County slayings among the most deadly in state's recent history

I agree -- I was surprised to find that this was the only thread mentioning it.

 

[Gardener1850]

Officials: Parents of suspect among 7 killed in Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - The man suspected of killing his parents and five other people in two rural Tennessee homes stole the car of one of the victims and was wearing a blood-stained T-shirt when he was seen, telling acquaintances the stain was just chocolate, according to authorities and court documents.

Law enforcement agents arrested 25-year-old Michael Cummins on Saturday about a mile (1.6 kilometers) from one of the two crime scenes at separate homes in rural Sumner County. He was shot and wounded while being taken into custody after being spotted in a creek bed.

Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Director David Rausch called the two crime scenes "horrific" and "gruesome." He didn't elaborate on the manner in which the victims died but said the attacks are believed to have taken place over more than one day.

Officials: Parents of suspect among 7 killed in Tennessee

 

[Gardener1850]

Cummins has a lengthy criminal record and had multiple court-ordered requests in the past to undergo mental health checks.

A court filing Monday said Cummins was in violation of his probation, which stemmed from a conviction for aggravated arson and aggravated assault in which in September 2017, he set his neighbor's home on fire while she was inside and shoved her and pulled her hair while he was holding a gun, court documents show.

At the time of his 2017 arrest, he said that "if I get out of jail, I'll go down there and do it again," and later, when authorities asked about that statement, said that "when I get out, I'll finish the job," according to the documents. The neighbor was not one of the seven people named as deceased.

Cummins in part violated his probation because he didn't comply with a required mental health evaluation, one document shows. In the arson and assault case, a judge had reduced his 10-year prison sentence to 10 years of probation in January - after his conviction in July - on the condition that he receive the mental health evaluation and not contact his neighbor.

Cummins was released from jail in mid-January, said Ray Whitley, the local district attorney general.

Officials: Parents of suspect among 7 killed in Tennessee

 

[YESorNO]

Michael Cummins: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

Apr 28, 2019

"Michael Cummins was on the run after police sought him in connection with multiple homicides in Sumner County, Tennessee, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation announced on Saturday. He has since been taken into custody. Law enforcement officials have not named him as a suspect but have said that he is a “person of interest.” Here is what we know so far about Cummins and what happened. This is a developing story...."

Michael Cummins: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know | Heavy.com

 

[Spellbound]

More on Cummins' record:
-last summer: court-documented mental health issues- Sumner County, sentenced to 10 years in prison, but received 10-years probation following his guilty plea (aggravated arson and aggravated assault charges /of a neighbor)

"If I get out of jail, I'll go there and do it again," an arrest warrant shows he told a Sumner County Sheriff's Office deputy at the time of his 2017 arrest. "When I get out, I'll finish the job."

-2012, violating a protective order and drug possession (found him in a parking lot with a 17-year-old girl he was not to have contact with)

-On Aug. 19, 2013, arrested for domestic assault after his aunt told police he was "destroying the house and throwing things at her," an affidavit of complaint shows. His charges were reduced to attempted assault and he was ordered to serve 150 days in jail.

-On Feb. 20, 2017, he stole a turkey and a game camera from a neighbor's house on Charles Brown Road and was charged with theft. He pleaded guilty and was placed on supervised probation and ordered to complete mental health treatment at that time.

-On May 6, 2017, Cummins was charged with domestic assault and robbery after he went to his mother’s house "where he is not supposed to be anymore" and asked her for money and other items. She refused and Cummins attacked his grandmother who tried to intervene. He pleaded guilty to the charge of domestic assault and was ordered to attend domestic violence classes and not to have any violent contact with his grandmother, according to court documents.

Sumner County killings: Who is suspect Michael Cummins?

 

[Kyshoegal]

Cummins has a lengthy criminal record and had multiple court-ordered requests in the past to undergo mental health checks.

A court filing Monday said Cummins was in violation of his probation, which stemmed from a conviction for aggravated arson and aggravated assault in which in September 2017, he set his neighbor's home on fire while she was inside and shoved her and pulled her hair while he was holding a gun, court documents show.

At the time of his 2017 arrest, he said that "if I get out of jail, I'll go down there and do it again," and later, when authorities asked about that statement, said that "when I get out, I'll finish the job," according to the documents. The neighbor was not one of the seven people named as deceased.

Cummins in part violated his probation because he didn't comply with a required mental health evaluation, one document shows. In the arson and assault case, a judge had reduced his 10-year prison sentence to 10 years of probation in January - after his conviction in July - on the condition that he receive the mental health evaluation and not contact his neighbor.

Cummins was released from jail in mid-January, said Ray Whitley, the local district attorney general.

Officials: Parents of suspect among 7 killed in Tennessee

I really cannot understand why LE feels that a truly mentally ill person can be relied upon to obtain their own mental health evaluation. WHY would they not have an evaluation completed while in custody? He certainly seems to fit the profile to at least warrant a 72 hr hold???

 

[scapa]

I really cannot understand why LE feels that a truly mentally ill person can be relied upon to obtain their own mental health evaluation. WHY would they not have an evaluation completed while in custody? He certainly seems to fit the profile to at least warrant a 72 hr hold???

It's odd, for sure. The family and wider community (including LE/social services) seem to have been in agreement that Cummins presented real risks. Why was he still loose and (seemingly) untreated, given the crimes, violations and escalations?

 

[Kyshoegal]

It's odd, for sure. The family and wider community (including LE/social services) seem to have been in agreement that Cummins presented real risks. Why was he still loose and (seemingly) untreated, given the crimes, violations and escalations?

I work in a Level 1 trauma hospital and I cannot tell you the devastation that could be avoided if there were more safety nets and assistance for families/people with mental illness. I see families begging for help but there is no place to guide them. This is truly a tragedy, and likely one that could be avoided. I'm shocked there is little to no media coverage on this. I live a few hours away in KY and crickets about this incident, seems to me the murder of 7-8 people would be headlines????

 

[Roxye]

School mourns 12-year-old girl slain in Westmoreland massacre

Just want to land this here.

I'll have more words later.

 

[JoeFromLB]

There are seven victims altogether.

Cummins served only 16 months of a ten-year sentence for attempting to burn down his neighbor's house and then assaulting her when she tried to put out the fire.
His probation officer was preparing an arrest warrant for probation violations shortly before the murders.

Michael Cummins' probation officer planned to try to arrest him. But Cummins allegedly killed 7 people before he got the chance.

 

[PastTense]

Another affidavit filed in Sumner County on Monday charged Cummins with criminal homicide and theft of property over $10,000.

According to that affidavit, Cummins stole a Kia from his neighbor, Shirley Fehrle, [69] who was one of the victims in the homicides.

Probation officer prepared to arrest Michael Cummins day before bodies were found, Sumner County DA says

Can someone post a URL to the arrest affidavit?

 

[YESorNO]

Medical examiner: Seven Tennessee homicide victims died from blunt force trauma

April 30, 2019

"NASHVILLE, Tenn. – All seven victims found dead in Tennessee this weekend died from blunt force trauma, the medical examiner's office confirmed.

Dr. Feng Li, chief medical examiner for Davidson County, said all the victims received multiple blunt force injuries. Some also received sharp force injuries, as if from a knife or other sharp object.

A weapon has not been determined, Li said.

The manner of death for all seven was determined to be homicide. The investigation is ongoing..."

Medical examiner: Seven Tennessee homicide victims died from blunt force trauma

 

[NervousNellie]

Wow. This is so sad. I agree that it makes no sense that he was “ordered” to undergo mental evaluation on several occasions. That said, what would that have accomplished? They’d have had an official diagnosis of his level of crazy. Nothing else would have changed. Our country does not know what to do with the mentally ill.

 

[YESorNO]

Sumner County killings: Who is suspect Michael Cummins?

 

[YESorNO]

Red flags before Westmoreland homicides a 'wake-up call,' attorney says

May 3, 2019

"Red flags in the run-up to Sumner County homicides that left seven people dead should serve as a "wake-up call" for the state, according to a prominent defense attorney who reviewed the case.

Attorney Alex Little said the case exposes flaws with the ways the criminal justice system handles offenders with mental health problems. Challenges are particularly potent in rural areas that can lack the funds and the infrastructure to get treatment to those who need it.

“We spend a lot more money putting people in jail than we do actually addressing the underlying issues that get them to the courthouse in the first place," Little said.

Michael Lee Cummins, the suspect in the Sumner County deaths, had a lengthy criminal history in Sumner County, including previous convictions for aggravated assault, domestic assault and attempted aggravated arson...."

Red flags before Westmoreland homicides a 'wake-up call,' attorney says
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Family, friends remember Westmoreland murder victims

May 03, 2019

Family, friends remember Westmoreland murder victims