MN- Duluth man Anthony Nephew fatally shot his two sons, wife, ex-wife and himself

[Knox]

DULUTH – A Duluth man known to struggle with his mental health this week killed his two sons, wife and ex-wife before shooting himself, police said Friday.

The killings were discovered when officers were called to conduct a welfare check Thursday afternoon at a house on the quiet 6000 block of Tacony Street in the West Duluth neighborhood, where Anthony Nephew’s ex-wife Erin Abramson, 47, lived with their son Jacob Nephew, 15.
Abramson, who worked for the city of Superior, Wis., had not shown up for work that day — which was uncharacteristic and a cause for concern among coworkers.

In the home, the woman and teenager were found dead from gunshot wounds.

Police then went to Nephew’s home, less than a mile away in the 4400 block of West Sixth Street, across from Denfeld High School. There they discovered the bodies of his wife, Kathryn “Kat” Ramsland, 45, and their son Oliver Nephew, 7.

Police: Duluth man fatally shot two sons, wife, ex-wife and himself

Anthony Nephew, whose sons were ages 7 and 15, had written about his struggles with mental illness.

www.startribune.com

 

[Knox]

Update: Names of people released in apparent murder/suicide in Duluth

Duluth Police are investigating the deaths of five individuals. Two of the victims were juveniles, and the suspect was found dead with self-inflicted gunshot wounds.

www.wdio.com

 

[Knox]

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[LadyL]

they said he didn't show up to work so it wasn't that he got fired that precipitated the violence - I wonder what kind of work he did - they all seem like lovely family people from their FB

so was it mental illness? I guess we'll never know unless other family members and friends talk to the media

 

[Panniniclaus]

The timing... the fact that both Kat and he seem to have politics on the brain. Could the election have been his tipping point? A place no longer fit for the family to live.

 

[katydid23]

interesting post by Anthony Nephew, last July:

Anthony Nephew​

·

A cop shot a woman over being “rebuked in Jesus’s name”.
My mental health and the world can no longer peacefully coexist, and a lot of the reason is religion.
I am terrified of religious zealots inflicting their misguided beliefs on me and my family. I have intrusive thoughts of being burned at the stake as a witch, or crucified on a burning cross, or my absolute favorite;
Having people actually believe that I or my child are Satan or, the anti-Christ or whatever their favorite color of boogie man they are afraid are this week.
When did turn the other cheek, become double-tap to the forehead?

 

[katydid23]

The timing... the fact that both Kat and he seem to have politics on the brain. Could the election have been his tipping point? A place no longer fit for the family to live.

sadly, that might be true.

 

[Knox]

interesting post by Anthony Nephew, last July:

Anthony Nephew​

·

A cop shot a woman over being “rebuked in Jesus’s name”.
My mental health and the world can no longer peacefully coexist, and a lot of the reason is religion.
I am terrified of religious zealots inflicting their misguided beliefs on me and my family. I have intrusive thoughts of being burned at the stake as a witch, or crucified on a burning cross, or my absolute favorite;
Having people actually believe that I or my child are Satan or, the anti-Christ or whatever their favorite color of boogie man they are afraid are this week.
When did turn the other cheek, become double-tap to the forehead?

I saw that post and more which were concerning.

So he killed his ex- wife too. Was that because she was protecting their son? They obviously didn’t live in the same house.

 

[LadyL]

The timing... the fact that both Kat and he seem to have politics on the brain. Could the election have been his tipping point? A place no longer fit for the family to live.

I thought the same but didn't want to post it cause that could go south fast.

 

[Panniniclaus]

I thought the same but didn't want to post it cause that could go south fast.

I'm the type to post things that can go south fast. Hitch your wagon to me. I will say, I don't post it unless I truly believe it to be true.. Not interested in causing trouble for nothing.

 

[iamshadow21]

interesting post by Anthony Nephew, last July:

Anthony Nephew​

·

A cop shot a woman over being “rebuked in Jesus’s name”.
My mental health and the world can no longer peacefully coexist, and a lot of the reason is religion.
I am terrified of religious zealots inflicting their misguided beliefs on me and my family. I have intrusive thoughts of being burned at the stake as a witch, or crucified on a burning cross, or my absolute favorite;
Having people actually believe that I or my child are Satan or, the anti-Christ or whatever their favorite color of boogie man they are afraid are this week.
When did turn the other cheek, become double-tap to the forehead?

He's talking about Sonya Massey. A schizophrenic woman shot completely unnecessarily by a person who never should have been made a cop, but was, and was passed like trash from one department to another until he killed her.

I wonder what Nephew's diagnosis was, or his child's, that he feared the same fate.

MOO

 

[Knox]

Ceynowa said police were still investigating the timeline by analyzing cellphone data. Nephew’s motives weren’t definitive, but the police chief said he was known to struggle with his mental health. Ceynowa confirmed that police had in the past responded to calls to the house.

Police: Duluth man fatally shot two sons, wife, ex-wife and himself

Anthony Nephew, whose sons were ages 7 and 15, had written about his struggles with mental illness.

www.startribune.com

Local View: Health care must include care for oft-overlooked mental well-being

From the column: "Even in this era where everyone gets equal rights, we have forgotten that all of us at one point or another is a mental health patient."

www.duluthnewstribune.com