Posted on 08/27/2002 5:47:49 AM PDT by CholeraJoe
Augusta kids killed
By CAROLYNN BRIGHT, IR Staff Writer - 08/27/02
Swanson faces 2 counts of murder.
A 46-year-old Augusta mother allegedly shot and killed two of her four children as they slept in their beds at the family ranch about 15 miles southwest of Augusta early Monday.
Jeanette Swanson faces two counts of deliberate homicide in connection with the shootings and is being held in the Lewis and Clark County Jail without bond.
Swanson was placed on suicide watch at the jail Monday afternoon while the bodies of her children — a 10-year-old girl and a 14-year-old boy — were brought to the State Crime Lab in Missoula, where an autopsy will be conducted, said Undersheriff Cheryl Liedle.
According to Liedle, emergency responders flocked to the Swanson Ranch just before 6 a.m. after Swanson called 911, reporting that she had shot her two children.
Swanson’s other two children — boys, ages 16 and 20 — were in the house at the time of the killing, but were unharmed in the incident.
Swanson’s husband, Gene, was sleeping in a camp trailer outside the residence when the shootings occurred, Liedle said.
According to reports, Swanson was waiting at the door of the residence when emergency crews arrived.
Her children were located in their beds inside — both were dead at the scene, Liedle said.
Liedle said a firearm believed to have been used in the shootings was recovered at the family home, but officials will await the results of the autopsies to determine whether it was, in fact, the murder weapon.
Court documents indicate that Swanson’s 20-year-old son reported to authorities that his mother had a .38 Smith and Wesson gun in her possession when she placed the 911 call, but Liedle would not confirm whether that was the same make of gun seized at the scene.
Lewis and Clark County Sheriff Sam McCormack said Monday morning that a motive for the killings was sketchy.
However, he said that Swanson and her husband had argued last week about Swanson’s decision to enroll the two children in school in Augusta — Gene Swanson wanted his wife to continue to home school the kids on the ranch while she wanted them to attend public school.
The children attended their first classes at school in Augusta last week.
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You forgot the part about,"...as ordained by the Holy Scripture..."
Sorry but you're the one with brain damage. Although probably not from syphilis being that you have to get laid to have that problem.
There was no sarcasm or "HUMOR!!!"in the post I responded to and the poster later stood by his comments, so the perception problem you attribute to me is actually yours.
No problem, as you Jarheads aren't known for your quick wit .... that's reserved for us Army guys. I like your profile, so I won't be adding you to my dumbass list.
The smartest and best looking guys were in the Air Force.
Now given that that was coming from a Montana resident, isn't the humor sort of Implied....?
I'll spare you the embarassment of recounting that whole Chosin Resevoir story...lol
Thank you. We're here all week!
Yeah, I know what you mean. I've got a Mt Feist and she is very hiper and just about broke my ankle this weekend getting under my feet while I was playing and chasing the kids in the backyard. I wanted to kill her for a few minutes.
That's exactly where we are with our oldest. He's going into the 8th grade. We're fortunate to live in a very conservative county with a decent public school system.
But, the way things are going, we may be doing it differently with the youngest. He's 2 1/2. My wife teaches in a homeschool academy. We may be going that route with him (or perhaps private school). We'll have to see.
.... Sits around the house swilling white zinfandel, and watching The View
Heck, you do that too.
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