GUILTY NJ - Four dead in New Year's shooting, Long Branch, 31 Dec 2017 *Arrest*

[borndem]

Yes, sad to say a lot of working class people are struggling these days. Incomes aren't coming close to keeping up with health care, housing, insurance, auto & repair and other costs. Been that way for at least 10 - 15 yrs now. Add in trying to raise a disabled teen and other young adults, it gets very expensive. I know those were the toughest years for my husband and I - when the kids were in their teens and entering college, etc. Trying to squeeze in extra used cars, insurance, cell phones, helping with college expenses. Hubs went several years with no pay raise, then experienced a big pay cut. It's a very expensive time. Kids work, but their income is usually limited due to school demands and very low wages.

JMO, it's time people start talking about the financial pressures families are facing and the negative impacts we see here at WS every day.

Absolutely yes to all of that. And that kind of pressure & worry can make folks lose hope and sometimes bad things can happen due to desperation and lack of hope of things getting better. It's so sad to read about thoughts such as Mom had. It makes me want to just cry for her and the load she carried and the worry her husband probably carried, too. Maybe their son thought he was helping. SMH.

 

[rsd1200]

Absolutely yes to all of that. And that kind of pressure & worry can make folks lose hope and sometimes bad things can happen due to desperation and lack of hope of things getting better. It's so sad to read about thoughts such as Mom had. It makes me want to just cry for her and the load she carried and the worry her husband probably carried, too. Maybe their son thought he was helping. SMH.

BBM
I told someone about this story today and they said the same thing.

 

[Jennifer17]

This boy is the one who will suffer most from these actions. He has lost his mum and dad who loved him and supported him and his sister who loved him too. If he did not have access to a gun, this would never have happened.

 

[Gardenista]

This boy is the one who will suffer most from these actions. He has lost his mum and dad who loved him and supported him and his sister who loved him too. If he did not have access to a gun, this would never have happened.

Victim blaming.

 

[Deleted member 158085]

Victim blaming.

It's not, really, since we don't know that the parents owned the gun. It could have belonged to the grandfather, who is not among the dead.

Plus, we're talking about a sheltered, autistic 16 year old who could not have gotten a gun to do this if one had not been in the house. And the reality is that while he probably would have still had a meltdown and been able to hurt multiple people, the likelihood of him being able to kill 4 people without a gun is much lower. It takes more time to kill 4 people with a knife, for instance. You have to make actual contact, so victims have a better chance of getting away, at least in this situation. We can't get away from these facts just because we don't want to blame the presence of a gun.

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[Betty P]

It's not, really, since we don't know that the parents owned the gun. It could have belonged to the grandfather, who is not among the dead.

Plus, we're talking about a sheltered, autistic 16 year old who could not have gotten a gun to do this if one had not been in the house. And the reality is that while he probably would have still had a meltdown and been able to hurt multiple people, the likelihood of him being able to kill 4 people without a gun is much lower. It takes more time to kill 4 people with a knife, for instance. You have to make actual contact, so victims have a better chance of getting away, at least in this situation. We can't get away from these facts just because we don't want to blame the presence of a gun.

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From what we know so far, it seems like a big tragedy all the way around. Preventable, as you say had the boy not had access to a gun. Any other form of meltdown would have allowed people to escape or overpower him. But a semi automatic assault rifle? No way. It's hard to understand the thinking of otherwise decent people when it comes to keeping dangerous weapons in their homes. Mostly it defies logic and common sense. As parents of a mentally handicapped child, they had a responsibility to keep weapons and ammo locked up or, at best, out of the house.

 

[rsd1200]

From what we know so far, it seems like a big tragedy all the way around. Preventable, as you say had the boy not had access to a gun. Any other form of meltdown would have allowed people to escape or overpower him. But a semi automatic assault rifle? No way. It's hard to understand the thinking of otherwise decent people when it comes to keeping dangerous weapons in their homes. Mostly it defies logic and common sense. As parents of a mentally handicapped child, they had a responsibility to keep weapons and ammo locked up or, at best, out of the house.

I think, that based on the wording of LE, he may have run across the key, or found where it was hidden. He and Mom were in that home together constantly (it seems, anyway), he may have seen the hiding place for the key. These don't sound like the type folks who'd just toss a firearm under the bed, with a fresh magazine.

 

[rsd1200]

It's not, really, since we don't know that the parents owned the gun. It could have belonged to the grandfather, who is not among the dead.

Plus, we're talking about a sheltered, autistic 16 year old who could not have gotten a gun to do this if one had not been in the house. And the reality is that while he probably would have still had a meltdown and been able to hurt multiple people, the likelihood of him being able to kill 4 people without a gun is much lower. It takes more time to kill 4 people with a knife, for instance. You have to make actual contact, so victims have a better chance of getting away, at least in this situation. We can't get away from these facts just because we don't want to blame the presence of a gun.

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I agree, it shouldn't have been there. I think they were ambushed though. I don't see this as a family who'd leave that out on the table. They'd never been known to own one. I've a theory but gonna keep it under my hat for now.

 

[GrilledCheezy]

I noticed that they'd been cleaned up too. I had gone back, to her Twitter Account, and the comment about how the Foo Fighters', video, "Low", had basically helped her during a difficult time (It is funny, but nsfw, if you watch it.) That tweet, had been noted in the paper, along with two other Tweets, and two of three were gone, when I looked. I saved a screen-shot of the attached link, with the Tweets noted, but didn't get shots of the Twitter feed.

https://www.app.com/story/news/crim...quadruple-homicide-said-hands-teen/994599001/

The tweets are all still there. You have to click on "Tweets & Replies" to see them, not "Tweets."

 

[rsd1200]

The tweets are all still there. You have to click on "Tweets & Replies" to see them, not "Tweets."

:doh: Thank you! I see them now. I rarely use Twitter.

 

[white rabbit]

wow.

http://ktla.com/2018/01/01/16-year-...y-killing-family-with-rifle-on-new-years-eve/

"Boy was schizophrenic," said another neighbor. "Yes, sick. In hospital, in house, in hospital, house."

 

[rsd1200]

wow.

http://ktla.com/2018/01/01/16-year-...y-killing-family-with-rifle-on-new-years-eve/

"Boy was schizophrenic," said another neighbor. "Yes, sick. In hospital, in house, in hospital, house."

If this is true, that's one rough diagnosis. These folks are many times loners and can be plagued by visual and auditory hallucinations (not sure that's the right word) that can affect them. To them those hallucinations are very hard to ignore. They can also suffer from paranoia. Of course this is just a neighbor and they may be guessing.

 

[Oregonsleuther]

I think, that based on the wording of LE, he may have run across the key, or found where it was hidden. He and Mom were in that home together constantly (it seems, anyway), he may have seen the hiding place for the key. These don't sound like the type folks who'd just toss a firearm under the bed, with a fresh magazine.

Per FB comments, it sounds like the gun belonged to Steven Jr and a friend of Jonathan’s indicated that Steven Jr wasn’t very responsible with securing it.

 

[enelram]

Per FB comments, it sounds like the gun belonged to Steven Jr and a friend of Jonathan’s indicated that Steven Jr wasn’t very responsible with securing it.

That has been my hunch all along which would explain why LE did not identify the owner.

.
I'm waiting to hear whether young Scott was on any psychotropic drugs for his problems or if he had been prescribed them in the past and was off them currently.

 

[rsd1200]

Per FB comments, it sounds like the gun belonged to Steven Jr and a friend of Jonathan’s indicated that Steven Jr wasn’t very responsible with securing it.

Thanks, I've not looked too much at FB and such. That takes one troubling theory off my mind. Sjr, did he live with them? In other words, I wonder if he, the gf, and grandpa were there for NYE, but did not live there.

 

[Gardenista]

Long Branch shooting: 'Guiding light' laid to rest

http://www.app.com/story/news/2018/01/06/long-branch-shooting-guiding-light-laid-rest/1010388001/

 

[rsd1200]

Long Branch shooting: 'Guiding light' laid to rest

http://www.app.com/story/news/2018/01/06/long-branch-shooting-guiding-light-laid-rest/1010388001/

She seemed to be a wonderful person. All of them seemed to be good folk. Do the other two brothers live there?

 

[Deadhead_Kay]

I’m not gonna screenshot snapchats cause of the notification. But the surviving older brother posted a photo from his Snapchat camera roll and it’s judt weird. He documented being in the back of the cop car after the shooting and he’s just seemed to be pretty emotionally unattached. It is the internet though so it’s hard to determine anything like how he’s dealing with this trauma.

 

[Gardenista]

She seemed to be a wonderful person. All of them seemed to be good folk. Do the other two brothers live there?

Not sure. I read or saw a video that stated one of them has a tech business and his own home but I'm not sure now which one it was. I think it was the one with the same last name, though.

 

[Gardenista]

I’m not gonna screenshot snapchats cause of the notification. But the surviving older brother posted a photo from his Snapchat camera roll and it’s judt weird. He documented being in the back of the cop car after the shooting and he’s just seemed to be pretty emotionally unattached. It is the internet though so it’s hard to determine anything like how he’s dealing with this trauma.

It's interesting you say this, because something hit me wrong about his IG "tribute" after the murders, but I couldn't figure out why it bugged me. I was going to post something, but never did because I thought I was just being overly suspicious.