Two women found shot in Ellicott City church

[Baltimatt]

One dead.

Howard County police are investigating a double shooting of two women, one of whom died, that occurred Thursday evening in an office at an Episcopal church in Ellicott City. According to police, a custodian at the church in the 3600 block of Rogers Avenue called 911 at about 5:20 p.m. after discovering the two women.

One woman was pronounced dead at the scene, while the other has been transferred to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center. They have not been identified.

Rather shocking they would be shot in a church.

[dialtone]

One dead.



Rather shocking they would be shot in a church.

WOW, that IS shocking

[Baltimatt]

The story has been updated. The body of a man was found nearby with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound and also a gun.

[crabsnbeer]

damn shame.

[Up2DaRack]

I drove past the scene around 7:30 when I was getting out of work, and Rogers Avenue was completely cordoned off, with the entire Main Street neighborhood outside looking past the tape to the Churchyard. I had no idea what was going on at the time. What a senseless tragedy.

[DaggerJohn]

It will be interesting to get the story behind this. Was the man who apparently shot the two women and then killed himself, related to either of them? What was the man's connection to the church, if any?

[BS21213]

If it is another murder/suicide then it isn't that shocking I don't think. They seem to be fairly common. And from what I hear wifebeaters (or guys who use violence against their women) are a dime a dozen.

[Smokey 1]

If it is another murder/suicide then it isn't that shocking I don't think. They seem to be fairly common. And from what I hear wifebeaters (or guys who use violence against their women) are a dime a dozen.

How much are abusive women a dozen? I have one I will sell you cheap.

[DaggerJohn]

According to The Sun, the suspect's been identified--a homeless guy living in the woods near the church who regularly used their food bank. That's gratitude for ya!

So how does a Christian process this? They think they're doing Jesus' work by 'feeding the hungry' and then along comes one of the beneficiaries of their charity and shoots them. Sad.

[dialtone]

According to The Sun, the suspect's been identified--a homeless guy living in the woods near the church who regularly used their food bank. That's gratitude for ya!

So how does a Christian process this? They think they're doing Jesus' work by 'feeding the hungry' and then along comes one of the beneficiaries of their charity and shoots them. Sad.

Damn! Homeless with a gun?! that's Crazy

[Baltimatt]

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bre...,3357387.story

Brenda Brewington, 59, of Ellicott City was found dead at the church. She was an administrative assistant at St. Peter's, according to the church's website.

...

Rev. Marguerite Mary Kohn, 62, of Halethorpe, was taken to the Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore and is in critical condition, police said. Kohn is the co-rector of St. Peter's, according to the church's website.

The man was identified as Douglas Franklin Jones, 56.

[crabsnbeer]

According to The Sun, the suspect's been identified--a homeless guy living in the woods near the church who regularly used their food bank. That's gratitude for ya!

So how does a Christian process this? They think they're doing Jesus' work by 'feeding the hungry' and then along comes one of the beneficiaries of their charity and shoots them. Sad.

Wow. That is terrible.
I wonder if they caught him stealing.

[slapshot]

Wow. That is terrible.
I wonder if they caught him stealing.

It said in the Post that he had gotten into several arguments with people in the church about their food bank program.

[crabsnbeer]

It said in the Post that he had gotten into several arguments with people in the church about their food bank program.

Sorry. I should have clicked the link first.

I guess the lesson is that people working with the homeless need to be able to recognize dangerous people. A high percentage of the homeless have serious mental illnesses.

[slapshot]

Sorry. I should have clicked the link first.

I guess the lesson is that people working with the homeless need to be able to recognize dangerous people. A high percentage of the homeless have serious mental illnesses.

Very true.

Here is my question - how/where did he get the gun? You don't normally hear of a homeless person having a gun. A knife, yes. But a gun seems rare to me (in part, because many do have documented mental problems).

[pepper]

WOW, that IS shocking

The guy was nuts, so it's just a building to him. Once he started becoming aggressive, they should have called the cops and had him removed from the property. A restraining order may have actually gotten the guy some help?

Theres always a risk when you open the door for the indigent you're trying to help, certainly if they have mental issues.

[prepfan]

Very true.

Here is my question - how/where did he get the gun? You don't normally hear of a homeless person having a gun. A knife, yes. But a gun seems rare to me.

Welcome to the 21st century; the gun has long since overtaken the knife as weapon of choice. Guns are everywhere. [no, I'm not calling for any additional gun laws]. (Even pre-kindergarten kids can have one !)

He could have come across it in his 'dealings' with his daily interactions. Maybe he saw someone stash it somewhere and picked it up after the stasher left.

[slapshot]

Welcome to the 21st century; the gun has long since overtaken the knife as weapon of choice. Guns are everywhere. [no, I'm not calling for any additional gun laws]. (Even pre-kindergarten kids can have one !)

He could have come across it in his 'dealings' with his daily interactions. Maybe he saw someone stash it somewhere and picked it up after the stasher left.

I appreciate that if someone wants a gun bad enough, they can get one. My point was - I think in all the assaults/crimes I've ever read about, involving a homeless person, it usually involved a knife, a broken bottle, or a blunt object, etc. The use of a gun by a homeless person just seems out of the norm. Many reasons for that. One being that many have a documented criminal or mental record. Second is - homeless people are often stopped/questioned/detained by the police...if found having an unregistered gun (which would be the case), they're going to be arrested.

But it's really not important...just curious....just an observation.

[BS21213]

pretty terrible story. I thought it was going to come out that one of the ladies boyfriends or husbands did it.

you try to help someone out. I think a lot of homeless people are for some reason or another mentally unstable. And some moreso than others.

I don't understand why a homeless person would have a gun but that is just me I guess....

I guess people at homeless shelters and food pantries should be very careful.

[crabsnbeer]

Court records show that he was living in Ellicott City in 2007/8 and having financial troubles. Than in 2010 he was living on Winters Lane in Catonsville and got a citation for a fishing infraction. I do not see any criminal history.

I am guessing that he owned the gun and took it with him when he left his last residence sometime in the last two years and became homeless.