BULLETIN: (UPDATED 4:20 P.M. EDT U.S.A.) The unthinkable has happened again in Kaufman County, Texas, where the district attorney, his wife and a prosecutor allegedly were gunned down earlier this year by a now-jailed former Justice of the Peace who was aided by his spouse.
Various media outlets now are reporting that a man went on a cross-town shooting spree yesterday in the Kaufman County community of Terrell. Five people are reported dead in a series of murders, including the mother and an aunt of the suspect. One of the murders also may be tied to an arson at the suspect’s home.
That suspect, Charles Everett Brownlow Jr., 36, now has been captured after a manhunt and is in police custody. Terrell is situated east of Dallas.
From the lede of a story at WFAA.com (italics added):
An overnight manhunt in Kaufman County led to the arrest of a 36-year-old Terrell man after five people were found killed at four separate locations Monday.
Perhaps the bitterest irony of all is that Terrell police reported just 19 days ago that the crime rate was “down nearly 9% from this time last year.” Now, officers find themselves investigating five murders and a related arson that occurred in a city of 16,000 within a single day.
International media, including the United Kingdom’s Daily Mail, also are reporting on the Terrell murder spree.
Luis Leal, a convenience-store clerk, also was among the victims, according to the NBC outlet in Dallas/Fort Worth.
“Brownlow allegedly killed the clerk inside the store then jumped in the car and took off after officers spotted him,” the station is reporting.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Times used this headline: “Eight hours of terror in Terrell, Texas, killing rampage, 5 dead.”
From the Times (italics added):
“We’re all in a state of shock,” [Terrell] Police Chief Jody Lay said at a televised news conference. “You have a tendency to think, ‘How can that happen here?’ This is a country community, a rural community, people are real close. This is going to be, it’s going to have a really big impact on us.”
Business publications also are covering events in Terrell. Here’s a snippet from the International Business Times (italics added):
Brownlow’s criminal history includes arrests for burglary, assault, unlawful possession of a firearm and possession of marijuana, authorities said.
