Neighbors in a Sacramento neighborhood are grappling with the aftermath of a murder-suicide that left three young children without their parents, as authorities say the children’s quick actions helped keep them safe.
The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office said the children fled their home and called for help after witnessing their father assault their mother around 9:30 p.m. Friday near the intersection of Edison Avenue and Ball Way.
A neighbor, Clay Warix, said the normally quiet area was suddenly filled with law enforcement activity.
“There’s a helicopter, there was an undercover cop that came driving down the street, just lots of sirens and looked like havoc for about 5 minutes,” Warix said.
Warix, who lives nearby and can see the home from his residence, said the situation is difficult to comprehend, especially as a parent.
According to the sheriff’s office, a juvenile caller reported the assault while deputies were on the way. Sgt. Edward Igoe, a spokesperson for the agency, said the three children left the home before deputies arrived.
“Our communications center received a call of service from a juvenile that called and stated that their dad was assaulting their mom. Fortunately, the 3 juveniles that were in the residence actually fled from the location, while our deputies were en route,” Igoe said.
When deputies arrived, they saw an unresponsive woman through a window. After entering the home, they found an unresponsive man inside. Both parents were pronounced dead at the scene.
The sheriff’s office is investigating the case as a murder-suicide and said there are no outstanding suspects. Officials also said no gun was found.
Warix said the children’s actions were courageous under unimaginable circumstances.
“it’s sad. I couldn’t imagine what the kids went through and how they dealt with that. I’m happy to see that they’re brave enough to step out and make the call that was necessary,” Warix said.
Other neighbors told ABC10 the father had been arrested several years ago and had recently returned home after serving time in jail, but the sheriff’s office said it could not confirm that information.
Igoe said the focus now is on the children, who have been placed with family.
“Obviously, anything that’s involving any type of kids is always gonna be one of the most difficult calls that any of our employees are gonna deal with. It’s very fortunate that that they’re safe and that they’re OK,” Igoe said.
Detectives are continuing their investigation as the coroner’s office works to identify the two individuals.
Meanwhile, neighbors say they are keeping the children in their thoughts.
“It’s unimaginable. I just couldn’t, couldn’t fathom what could be going through the kids’ heads, how confused they could be, um, so it’s, it, it’s terrible,” Warix said.
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