….BEHIND THE BLOODSHED….

THE UNTOLD STORY OF AMERICA’S MASS KILLINGS...

Since 2006, there have been more than 200 mass killings in the United States.

Well-known images from Newtown, Aurora and Virginia Tech capture the nation’s attention, but similar bloody scenes happen with alarming frequency and much less scrutiny.

USA TODAY examined FBI data -- which defines a mass killing as four or more victims -- as well as local police records and media reports to understand mass killings in America. They happen far more often than the government reports, and the

circumstances of those killings -- the people who commit them, the weapons they use and the forces that motivate them -- are far more predictable than many might think.

Yet no one is keeping track..

.MASS KILLINGSHAPPEN ABOUT EVERYTWO WEEKS While only about 1% of all murders nationally, mass killings still happen frequently. The FBI counted 172 cases of mass killings between 2006 and 2011. That does not include some large states such as Florida, for example. Poor reporting by police agencies to the FBI also means some mass killings were left out, while others that don’t meet the standard were included.. 

Erroneous and excluded cases leave FBI data with a 61%accuracy rate.

AP

This undated photo shows Makayla Sitton, 6. She was shot to death in her bed by her cousin.

·         NOVEMBER 2009

·         JUPITER, FLA.

·         VICTIMS: 4

·         WEAPON: GUN

“I’ve been waiting 20 years to do this.”- Shooter Paul Merhige's statement to his family, quoted by the Associated Press

Paul Merhige, a 35-year-old with a history of mental illness and conflicts with his family, was invited to Thanksgiving dinner with 16 other relatives. He arrived late but stayed quiet, according to police reports. Around 10 p.m., he went out to his car and retrieved a gun, then allegedly said he had "waited 20 years" to do it. He shot his 33-year-old twin sisters, Lisa Knight, who was pregnant, and Carla Merhige. He also killed his aunt, Raymonde Joseph, 76, and tracked his 6-year-old cousin Makayla, to her bedroom, where she was killed. Two others, including Makayla’s father, were injured.

Merhige fled the home, prompting a six-week manhunt through the Florida Keys, where he was tracked to a hotel after the case was featured on America’s Most Wanted. The trial revealed Merhige’s history of institutionalization, battles with anxiety disorders and threats to "slit his sister's throat" (which prompted protective orders on both sides that later were dropped).

His parents, who had supported him with an apartment and car, refused to hire an attorney for their oldest child. To avoid the death penalty – and because his mental illness would have complicated such a sentence – Merhige is serving seven consecutive life terms.

AP

Law enforcement officials from across the state investigate one of the crime scenes of a shooting rampage in Samson, Ala.

·         MARCH 2009

·         SAMSON, ALA.

·         VICTIMS: 10

·         WEAPON: GUN

“This was 20-something miles of terror.”- Alabama state Sen. Harri Anne Smith, quoted in USA TODAY

The FBI's homicide data, collected from police agencies across the USA, is only as good as the organizations that provide the information. Many police departments don’t submit all their crimes, or else they mislabel them so they aren’t categorized correctly. Florida doesn’t submit homicide data to the FBI at all; Nebraska and the District of Columbia only started doing so in 2009.

The result: A number of high-profile mass killings aren’t included in the FBI figures. Among those is the fatal shooting of 10 people in Samson, Ala., in 2009. Michael K. McLendon abruptly quit his job at a sausage plant and the next week shot his mother and set her body aflame. McLendon drove 12 miles to his uncle’s house, where he shot and killed five people on the front porch, then killed four other family members and strangers.

Among the victims were his uncle, cousin, grandmother, and an 18-month-old girl. After being pursued by police, McLendon ended his spree at his former workplace, where co-workers had said he had been a reliable employee, killing himself inside the sausage plant. In a letter he mailed to authorities, he said he was depressed and frustrated that he would never become a police officer or a Marine.

PUBLIC MASSACRES LIKE NEWTOWN ACCOUNT FOR 1 IN 6 MASS KILLINGS

Breakups, estrangements and family arguments make up the majority of cases, though unrelated victims may be caught in the crossfire.

THE MAJORITY OF MASS KILLINGS ARE FAMILY-RELATED

A breakup is the trigger behind 1 in 4 mass killings that do not involve strangers, gangs or a robbery gone wrong. Yet the examples below illustrate how holiday stress, a job loss or financial ruin can lead to extreme violence. And often, that violence occurs in families that otherwise seemed normal.

HOLIDAYS

FINANCIAL STRESS

BREAKUP

IMPULSIVE AP/LOS ANGELES TIMES, BARBARA DAVIDSON

Firefighters remove debris from the house where a man dressed as Santa opened fire at a Christmas party before setting the house ablaze.

DECEMBER 2008

COVINA, CALIF.

VICTIMS: 9

WEAPON: GUN

“I heard the sound and saw the blood on the floor ... and I just ran.”

- shooting victim Katrina Yuzefpolsky, quoted by USA TODAY

Facing a divorce and having lost his job, Bruce Pardo, 45, paid a seamstress $300 to make him an extra-large Santa Claus suit. On Dec. 18, Pardo’s divorce was final. On Christmas Eve, clad in the Santa outfit and carrying four guns and a device to spray fuel, he went to his ex-wife’s parents’ home, where her extended family had gathered.

He barged in on the festivities just before midnight and began shooting, killing his ex, her parents, three siblings and two sisters-in-law. Pardo then began spraying fuel through the house, igniting an explosion and subsequent blaze that killed a 17-year-old nephew. A getaway car, plane ticket and $17,000 in cash indicated that Pardo had planned to flee, but when he was badly burned by the fire, he drove 40 miles to his brother's house, where he fatally shot himself.

ABOUT 57% OF VICTIMS KNEW THEIR KILLER, EVEN IF THEY WEREN'T THE MAIN TARGET

1 in 4victims were close family members -- children, siblings, spouses, etc

ABOUT ONE-THIRDOF MASS KILLERS DON'T LEAVE THE SCENE ALIVE

Many mass killers do not face prosecution. About a quarter commit suicide after the crime, and others are killed by police. Still more are deemed incompetent due to mental illness. When cases do go to trial, they can often take years because of the death penalty or other complications.

While guns are the most common weapons, a car, a fire or nearly anything at hand can become a weapon. 

As the cases below show, the killing can be planned or impulsive.

THE HARTFORD COURANT

The car -- driven by Mary Neliz Jimenez -- crashed into a tree, split in half and burst into flames, killing five. Kevin Cales, Jimenez's estranged boyfriend, was chasing them at the time. He was later killed in prison.

·         MAY 2006

·         BERLIN, CONN.

·         VICTIMS: 5

·         WEAPON: CAR

“…she knew he was following her. She feared for her life.”- Mary Neliz Jimenez's friend, Christina Galarza, quoted in The Hartford Courant

Family members said Mary Neliz Jimenez was scared for her life. Months before her death, the 21-year-old mother of one had applied for a restraining order against her former boyfriend, but failed to appear for a hearing, and the case was dismissed.

Early on the morning of May 27, Kevin Cales began following Jimenez, who had left her job at a local nightclub and was driving a car with four co-workers inside. Police said vehicle speeds exceeded 120 mph. Jimenez lost control of her car, jumped a curb and crashed into trees. The car was split in half, and the back half caught fire, killing all inside.

Cales’ car also crashed nearby, but no passengers were killed. Cales was convicted on five counts of first-degree manslaughter. Soon after his sentencing, he was killed in prison by a relative of one of the crash victims.

Ineffective protective orders, gaps in the mental health system, immigration bureaucracy and other lapses have been implicated in many cases.

Ineffective protective orders, gaps in the mental health system, immigration bureaucracy and other lapses have been implicated in many cases.

AP

John Moses Ragin is charged with killing 32-year-old Crystal Ragin and her three children, then setting the building on fire. The couple's missing 5-year-old son was found with family members in South Carolina.

·         AUGUST 2011

·         NEWPORT NEWS, VA.

·         VICTIMS: 4

·         WEAPON: KNIFE

“Petitioner fears for her life, is afraid to live with respondent.”-Crystal Ragin's protective order, quoted by the (Newport News) Daily Press

Crystal Ragin, an Army sergeant serving at Fort Eustis, told a judge that she feared for her life and didn’t know what would happen to her and her four children once she left the courthouse. Earlier, she had testified against her husband in a domestic abuse case accusing him of picking her up and throwing her to the floor.

The judge issued the protective order that day barring John Ragin from having any contact with Crystal. But before it could be served, the Ragins got into a dispute at Crystal’s home. Police arriving to that call for help couldn’t find the order in the system and let John Ragin go. The next afternoon, Crystal and three of her children were found stabbed to death. One child, John Ragin’s biological son, was left unharmed and taken by John Ragin to South Carolina after the murders.

A sheriff’s deputy arriving to serve the protective order 24 hours after it was issued found police searching Ragin’s Newport News home. Ragin, who was arrested in South Carolina, faces charges of capital murder and is awaiting trial.

Many mass killers do not face prosecution. About a quarter commit suicide after the crime, and others are killed by police. Still more are deemed incompetent due to mental illness. When cases do go to trial, they can often take years because of the death penalty or other complications.

Many mass killers do not face prosecution. About a quarter commit suicide after the crime, and others are killed by police. Still more are deemed incompetent due to mental illness. When cases do go to trial, they can often take years because of the death penalty or other complications.

A killer wielding a multiple-magazine assault rifle is the exception. More typically, the closest available weapon is used. These are the guns killers carried with them, regardless of whether it was used. Stashes in cars, at home, etc. are not included.

Source: USA TODAY