Olivia Munoz, The Associated Press
July 5, 2006, 3:39 PM PDT
In an image provided by the Gustine Police Department, Aubrie Branscum, 12, is shown in an undated photo.
In an image provided by the Gustine Police Department, Jacob Branscum, 10, is shown in an undated photo.
Gustine, Calif. — Clergy and crisis experts from throughout Merced County were counseling the residents of a small community where police say a man apparently shot his four young children with a rifle before turning the gun on himself.
The deaths of Trevor Branscum, 38, and his children shook the city of Gustine, a community of about 5,200 people 90 miles northwest of Fresno.
According to the Gustine Police, Branscum and his wife, Amanda Trimble, were arguing at a market near their home early Tuesday morning. Police planned to review the store's surveillance tape to see what led to the fight.
Trimble told police she left with a friend after they got home and came back about an hour later to find her husband fatally shot. Her friend called police who found Trimble lying in the street, hysterical but not physically hurt, officers said.
Police discovered the bodies of Aubrie, 12, Jacob, 10, and twins Taylor and Alyssa, both 5, in the house, apparently shot while they were sleeping, said Police Sgt. Vince Inaudi.
Trimble was staying with family outside of Gustine on Wednesday. She broke down during initial police questioning but will be interviewed again, Chief Don Hutchins said.
Inaudi said she is not a suspect.
"We haven't discovered anything that leads us to believe that this is not a murder-suicide like we originally thought," Inaudi said. Police continued their investigation Wednesday.
Branscum and Trimble were married on Valentine's Day three years ago, around the same time they moved into their four-bedroom, three-story house. Branscum, who worked in construction, and Trimble, a waitress, had lived in Patterson and Walnut Grove before moving to Gustine.
"We're still trying to figure out what brought them here and how this all came about. There are a lot of little pieces to this puzzle we're still trying to fit together," Inaudi said.
Police could not find any reports of domestic violence from the couple, Inaudi said.
Neighbors said the family always seemed happy. On Monday, the father and children were in the front yard lighting fireworks, neighbors said.
Aubrie Branscum was a student at Gustine Middle School. She was on softball, soccer and cheerleading teams, Hutchins said. She and her 10-year-old brother, Jacob, were in a city summer camp that did community services such as painting, pulling weeds and planting flowers.
"I never heard any arguments from the house," said Steven Morris, 18, who lives across the street. "It's sad because the kids didn't do anything. Kids don't deserve that."
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