A 17-year-old girl is dead and her 32-year-old mother is in critical condition after her husband allegedly broke into a home and committed what Merced police are calling a senseless murder-suicide Sunday morning.
The crime is particularly tragic because the teenage victim was killed following her own birthday party, neighbors say. The suspect in the case was her stepfather, police said.
Merced Police Cmdr. Floyd Higdon said investigators are not releasing the names of the victims or the suspect, pending notification of next-of-kin.
Police responded to a home at 336 Serano St. on Sunday after receiving a 2:41 a.m. phone call from a woman who told police that her husband had broken into her house and was trying to kill her.
Inside the house, police discovered the body of the 17-year-old girl lying in a bed, killed by a single gunshot wound to the head. Police also found the 47-year-old male suspect lying unresponsive, with no visible wounds, Higdon said.
Eric Ramirez, 22, and his mother, Linda, were awakened after they heard the mother frantically banging on their front door and window. Ramirez said the woman was so hysterical, that she cracked a window in front of the house with her hand, while trying to get help.
Ramirez said his mother let the woman into the house and called 911. He noticed that she was bleeding on the left side of her body. "She was screaming that he was going to kill her," Ramirez said.
Neighbors said the 17-year-old girl had been celebrating her birthday with her family on Saturday.
Outside the home, a stack of empty cake boxes sits on top of a recycling bin. Neighbor Timothy Oliva, 48, said the girl had offered him a slice of cake on Saturday.
On Sunday, however, Oliva said he was shocked to see the girl's home surrounded with yellow police tape and investigators looking for clues. "It just kind of hit me. She just gave me cake last night. She seemed like she was so happy," Oliva said.
The suspect was transported to Mercy Medical Center Merced and pronounced dead. Police believe the suspect was the stepfather of the 17-year-old victim, Higdon said.
Higdon said there were seven other children in the house at the time of the incident, between the age of 6 months and 11 years old. Those children were unharmed and are now in the care of Merced County Child Protective Services.
The mother told police that she had been sleeping in the house and was awakened by the sound of a gunshot. An altercation then happened between her and her husband, during which he tried to force her to ingest an unknown power, Higdon said.
The woman was able to spit out the powder -- but was apparently shot once in the torso during the altercation with her husband. She was able to make her way to a neighbor's house and call police, Higdon said.
During the incident one of the children -- an 11-year-old boy -- was also able to run from the house to seek help from neighbors.
The mother was flown to a hospital in Modesto, where she remains in critical condition.
Ramirez also saw the victim on Saturday celebrating her birthday with loved ones, in front of the house. "I just feel like it's horrible," Ramirez said. "I can't imagine how (the suspect) could do that to her and her family.
The woman and her family were relatively new to the South Merced neighborhood, having moved to the residence about six months ago, Oliva said.
The mother is in critical condition at a local hospital, Higdon said. "We're still trying to figure what the motive may have been," Higdon said.
Although police believe the suspect took his own life, they will not know the cause of death until an autopsy is performed, Higdon said.
Merced police have previously responded to the home on disturbance calls, although the suspect has never been arrested by the department, Higdon said.
Oliva said he often heard the couple arguing -- and noticed the suspect had been away from the residence for about two weeks. "I just didn't think it would escalate to that," Oliva said.
Police are asking anyone with information about this crime to call Sgt. Scott Skinner at (209) 385-4902 or the department's anonymous tip line at (209) 385-4725.
The crime is particularly tragic because the teenage victim was killed following her own birthday party, neighbors say. The suspect in the case was her stepfather, police said.
Merced Police Cmdr. Floyd Higdon said investigators are not releasing the names of the victims or the suspect, pending notification of next-of-kin.
Police responded to a home at 336 Serano St. on Sunday after receiving a 2:41 a.m. phone call from a woman who told police that her husband had broken into her house and was trying to kill her.
Inside the house, police discovered the body of the 17-year-old girl lying in a bed, killed by a single gunshot wound to the head. Police also found the 47-year-old male suspect lying unresponsive, with no visible wounds, Higdon said.
Eric Ramirez, 22, and his mother, Linda, were awakened after they heard the mother frantically banging on their front door and window. Ramirez said the woman was so hysterical, that she cracked a window in front of the house with her hand, while trying to get help.
Ramirez said his mother let the woman into the house and called 911. He noticed that she was bleeding on the left side of her body. "She was screaming that he was going to kill her," Ramirez said.
Neighbors said the 17-year-old girl had been celebrating her birthday with her family on Saturday.
Outside the home, a stack of empty cake boxes sits on top of a recycling bin. Neighbor Timothy Oliva, 48, said the girl had offered him a slice of cake on Saturday.
On Sunday, however, Oliva said he was shocked to see the girl's home surrounded with yellow police tape and investigators looking for clues. "It just kind of hit me. She just gave me cake last night. She seemed like she was so happy," Oliva said.
The suspect was transported to Mercy Medical Center Merced and pronounced dead. Police believe the suspect was the stepfather of the 17-year-old victim, Higdon said.
Higdon said there were seven other children in the house at the time of the incident, between the age of 6 months and 11 years old. Those children were unharmed and are now in the care of Merced County Child Protective Services.
The mother told police that she had been sleeping in the house and was awakened by the sound of a gunshot. An altercation then happened between her and her husband, during which he tried to force her to ingest an unknown power, Higdon said.
The woman was able to spit out the powder -- but was apparently shot once in the torso during the altercation with her husband. She was able to make her way to a neighbor's house and call police, Higdon said.
During the incident one of the children -- an 11-year-old boy -- was also able to run from the house to seek help from neighbors.
The mother was flown to a hospital in Modesto, where she remains in critical condition.
Ramirez also saw the victim on Saturday celebrating her birthday with loved ones, in front of the house. "I just feel like it's horrible," Ramirez said. "I can't imagine how (the suspect) could do that to her and her family.
The woman and her family were relatively new to the South Merced neighborhood, having moved to the residence about six months ago, Oliva said.
The mother is in critical condition at a local hospital, Higdon said. "We're still trying to figure what the motive may have been," Higdon said.
Although police believe the suspect took his own life, they will not know the cause of death until an autopsy is performed, Higdon said.
Merced police have previously responded to the home on disturbance calls, although the suspect has never been arrested by the department, Higdon said.
Oliva said he often heard the couple arguing -- and noticed the suspect had been away from the residence for about two weeks. "I just didn't think it would escalate to that," Oliva said.
Police are asking anyone with information about this crime to call Sgt. Scott Skinner at (209) 385-4902 or the department's anonymous tip line at (209) 385-4725.
