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| Suspect charged in Houston deaths of eight people, including six children | |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| A man with a history of violence killed six children and two adults in a domestic dispute before surrendering after a standoff, police said. | A man with a history of violence killed six children and two adults in a domestic dispute before surrendering after a standoff, police said. |
| David Conley, a 48-year-old with a string of arrests and convictions, entered his former partner’s house on a quiet street in suburban Houston on Saturday night, restrained his victims with handcuffs and fatally shot them, according to police. He has been charged with multiple counts of capital murder. | David Conley, a 48-year-old with a string of arrests and convictions, entered his former partner’s house on a quiet street in suburban Houston on Saturday night, restrained his victims with handcuffs and fatally shot them, according to police. He has been charged with multiple counts of capital murder. |
| Officers were called to make a welfare check requested by a relative of Valerie Jackson, Conley’s ex-girlfriend, police told reporters on Sunday. | Officers were called to make a welfare check requested by a relative of Valerie Jackson, Conley’s ex-girlfriend, police told reporters on Sunday. |
| No one answered the door at the single-storey home about 15 miles north of downtown, said Tim Cannon, chief deputy with the Harris County sheriff’s office. When officers ran a criminal history check they discovered an outstanding assault warrant in Conley’s name. They then saw the body of a child through a window. | No one answered the door at the single-storey home about 15 miles north of downtown, said Tim Cannon, chief deputy with the Harris County sheriff’s office. When officers ran a criminal history check they discovered an outstanding assault warrant in Conley’s name. They then saw the body of a child through a window. |
| “Deputies forced entry and were met with gunfire, withdrew and established a perimeter,” Cannon said. | “Deputies forced entry and were met with gunfire, withdrew and established a perimeter,” Cannon said. |
| A specialist tactical unit and a hostage negotiation team arrived and Conley gave himself up. The incident lasted several hours, Cannon said. | A specialist tactical unit and a hostage negotiation team arrived and Conley gave himself up. The incident lasted several hours, Cannon said. |
| “The killer’s motives appear to be related to a dispute with Valerie, who was his former partner,” he said. | “The killer’s motives appear to be related to a dispute with Valerie, who was his former partner,” he said. |
| Police named the dead adults as Jackson, 40, and her husband, Dewayne Jackson, 50. One of the children was believed to be Conley’s, they said – Nathaniel, aged 13. The others, aged between six and 11 and with the surname Jackson, were Jonah, Caleb, Trinity, Honesty and Dewayne Jr. | Police named the dead adults as Jackson, 40, and her husband, Dewayne Jackson, 50. One of the children was believed to be Conley’s, they said – Nathaniel, aged 13. The others, aged between six and 11 and with the surname Jackson, were Jonah, Caleb, Trinity, Honesty and Dewayne Jr. |
| Police initially said three adults and five children had died because of uncertainty about the age of Nathaniel, who was tall. All the victims were shot and found in the house’s three bedrooms. The majority had been restrained with handcuffs, said Sergeant Craig Clopton, the lead investigator. | Police initially said three adults and five children had died because of uncertainty about the age of Nathaniel, who was tall. All the victims were shot and found in the house’s three bedrooms. The majority had been restrained with handcuffs, said Sergeant Craig Clopton, the lead investigator. |
| Asked earlier in the day about reports of previous welfare checks, Clopton said police had no legal basis to enter the house at that point. Jackson had changed the locks, police said, but Conley appeared to have gained entry through an open window. | Asked earlier in the day about reports of previous welfare checks, Clopton said police had no legal basis to enter the house at that point. Jackson had changed the locks, police said, but Conley appeared to have gained entry through an open window. |
| Court records show a string of cases involving Conley dating back to the 1980s, including theft, robbery with threats, evading arrest, retaliation, possession of crack cocaine and assault. | Court records show a string of cases involving Conley dating back to the 1980s, including theft, robbery with threats, evading arrest, retaliation, possession of crack cocaine and assault. |
| According to a court document, last month Conley allegedly pushed Jackson’s head against a refrigerator in the house multiple times because he was angry that she had failed to discipline her 10-year-old son when he came back from the park after dark. He planned to punish the child with a belt, the record states. | According to a court document, last month Conley allegedly pushed Jackson’s head against a refrigerator in the house multiple times because he was angry that she had failed to discipline her 10-year-old son when he came back from the park after dark. He planned to punish the child with a belt, the record states. |
| In 2013, Conley was convicted of threatening Jackson with a knife and sentenced to nine months in jail. After he was charged an emergency protective order banning him from making contact with Jackson and her family for three months was issued by a magistrate. | In 2013, Conley was convicted of threatening Jackson with a knife and sentenced to nine months in jail. After he was charged an emergency protective order banning him from making contact with Jackson and her family for three months was issued by a magistrate. |
| As investigators went in and out of the property on Sunday morning, a dozen neighbours gathered at the yellow crime scene tape that cordoned off the entrance to the street, a tree-lined road with neat, modern houses. One said that it was a quiet, nice place to live. | As investigators went in and out of the property on Sunday morning, a dozen neighbours gathered at the yellow crime scene tape that cordoned off the entrance to the street, a tree-lined road with neat, modern houses. One said that it was a quiet, nice place to live. |
| It is the second mass shooting at a home in suburban north Houston in little over a year. In July 2014 Ronald Haskell, who had a history of family-related violence, was charged with capital murder in the shooting deaths of two parents and four children, aged from four to 13. A 15-year-old girl survived the shootings in the town of Spring. | It is the second mass shooting at a home in suburban north Houston in little over a year. In July 2014 Ronald Haskell, who had a history of family-related violence, was charged with capital murder in the shooting deaths of two parents and four children, aged from four to 13. A 15-year-old girl survived the shootings in the town of Spring. |
| “Once again a senseless tragedy has struck our community,” Cannon said. | “Once again a senseless tragedy has struck our community,” Cannon said. |