Post by Melissa on Feb 1, 2011 21:08:09 GMT -5
www.post-gazette.com/pg/09055/951232-85.stm
Relatives say boy threatened to 'pop' slain mom
NEW CASTLE -- Relatives of Kenzie Marie Houk said her boyfriend's 11-year-old son, Jordan Brown, who is charged with fatally shooting the pregnant woman as she slept, once threatened to "pop Kenzie in the head."
Ms. Houk's brother-in-law, Jason Kraner, said Jordan had told his young son in December that he planned to shoot Ms. Houk and her two daughters, but no one believed he was capable of it.
"Everyone loved him like he was their son," Mr. Kraner said during an emotional news conference last night. "We gave him nothing but love."
Jordan is charged with fatally shooting Ms. Houk and her unborn child on Friday with his youth-model 20-gauge shotgun in the rural Lawrence County home, where Ms. Houk moved about five months ago.
"He looked at [Ms. Houk] like she was a problem, like here is someone about to take my father away from me and have a baby boy," Jennifer Kraner, Ms. Houk's sister, told a room full of reporters at their childhood home in New Castle. Tearful, she said she knew Jordan, to be "spoiled" and "jealous" despite the motherly nature Ms. Houk extended to him. "Life was all about him before," she said.
Authorities have charged Jordan with two counts of homicide, including the murder of an unborn child. Ms. Houk was nine-months pregnant at the time of her death. She also has two daughters, Jenessa, 7, and Adalynn, 4. It was Adalynn who discovered her mother's body.
Ms. Houk and her daughters moved in with her boyfriend, Chris Brown, about five months ago and began living in his house along with Mr. Brown's son, Jordan, relatives said. Kenzie Houk told her sister she'd had "issues" with the boy but she longed for their families to blend.
Ms. Houk's mother, Deborah, said her daughter wanted the two families to get along and become one.
"My daughter would say, 'I want to be a family so bad, I want Jordan to feel so welcome,' and I told her to bear with him, I'd say, go above and beyond, and she did," Deborah Houk said, before bursting into tears.
"I don't know how something like this could happen."
Jordan was still being held in isolation yesterday at the Lawrence County Jail, according to county District Attorney John Bongivengo, and law enforcement officials are continuing to investigate the shooting.
In a criminal complaint released yesterday, Jenessa Houk told police she had just finished putting on her socks and shoes Friday morning when she heard a "big boom."
The 7-year-old girl then asked Jordan what had happened. Earlier, she had seen him carrying a pair of guns.
"He didn't tell me," Jenessa said in an interview with state police, according to the criminal complaint.
She and Jordan then left their two-story farmhouse in New Beaver, Lawrence County and boarded a school bus, apparently unaware that her mother lay dead in a bedroom. She had been shot in the back of the head at close range.
Relatives said Jordan was trained to use guns and knew their danger.
"He knew all about guns, he knew the severity of guns, and he knew what he did," Mrs. Houk said amid sobs. "I'm bitter, but God tells us to forgive. That will come in time."
The family said they have been in contact with Jordan's father, who has maintained that the slaying "had to be an accident, because "Jordan loved Kenzie," Mr. Kraner said.
"Chris is a victim, too," Mr. Kraner said.
Mr. Bongivengo acknowledged jealousy as a possible motive. Jordan's father had raised the boy on his own up until last year, when he started dating Ms. Houk. In December, Mr. Brown and Ms. Houk became engaged.
Ms. Houk was expecting the couple's first child, a boy they planned to name Christopher, in early March.
"Now [Jordan] has to share [his father] with three other girls and potentially a newborn," Mr. Bongivengo said.
The district attorney is still considering alternatives for holding Jordan, although he acknowledged that his options are limited.
Pennsylvania law requires that a juvenile accused of homicide be charged as an adult. And anyone charged with homicide cannot be released on bail while awaiting trial.
Also, the evidence suggests that Ms. Houk's killing was premeditated.
Jordan apparently covered his shotgun with a blanket to keep it concealed when he left his bedroom, Mr. Bongivengo said.
The blue blanket has a quarter-sized hole that appeared to be singed from a shotgun blast, and investigators are testing it for gun residue.
"He took the time to hide what he was doing," Mr. Bongivengo said.
Police found the suspected murder weapon in Jordan's room. When investigators interviewed the boy, he suggested that someone else had committed the crime, saying there had been an unknown truck parked near the home on Friday morning.
Jordan faces a preliminary hearing Thursday. His court-appointed attorney, Dennis Elisco, plans to petition the judge to move the case to juvenile court.
If that happens, Jordan could be taken to a juvenile detention facility. And if he's later convicted, he would be freed when he reaches the age of 21.
But if the case stays in adult criminal court, Jordan would face life in prison if convicted.
Mr. Bongivengo said he hasn't decided if he will argue against a petition to move the case. He's also considering having the boy transferred to a facility -- possibly the Allegheny County Jail -- that has more experience with juveniles accused of major crimes.
Visitation is today from 5 to 8 p.m. at the William F. & Roger M. DeCarbo Funeral Home at 926 Cunningham Ave. in New Castle. A funeral service will be held there at 8 p.m.
Jerome Sherman can be reached at jsherman@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1183. Sadie Gurman can be reached at sgurman@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1878.
Relatives say boy threatened to 'pop' slain mom
NEW CASTLE -- Relatives of Kenzie Marie Houk said her boyfriend's 11-year-old son, Jordan Brown, who is charged with fatally shooting the pregnant woman as she slept, once threatened to "pop Kenzie in the head."
Ms. Houk's brother-in-law, Jason Kraner, said Jordan had told his young son in December that he planned to shoot Ms. Houk and her two daughters, but no one believed he was capable of it.
"Everyone loved him like he was their son," Mr. Kraner said during an emotional news conference last night. "We gave him nothing but love."
Jordan is charged with fatally shooting Ms. Houk and her unborn child on Friday with his youth-model 20-gauge shotgun in the rural Lawrence County home, where Ms. Houk moved about five months ago.
"He looked at [Ms. Houk] like she was a problem, like here is someone about to take my father away from me and have a baby boy," Jennifer Kraner, Ms. Houk's sister, told a room full of reporters at their childhood home in New Castle. Tearful, she said she knew Jordan, to be "spoiled" and "jealous" despite the motherly nature Ms. Houk extended to him. "Life was all about him before," she said.
Authorities have charged Jordan with two counts of homicide, including the murder of an unborn child. Ms. Houk was nine-months pregnant at the time of her death. She also has two daughters, Jenessa, 7, and Adalynn, 4. It was Adalynn who discovered her mother's body.
Ms. Houk and her daughters moved in with her boyfriend, Chris Brown, about five months ago and began living in his house along with Mr. Brown's son, Jordan, relatives said. Kenzie Houk told her sister she'd had "issues" with the boy but she longed for their families to blend.
Ms. Houk's mother, Deborah, said her daughter wanted the two families to get along and become one.
"My daughter would say, 'I want to be a family so bad, I want Jordan to feel so welcome,' and I told her to bear with him, I'd say, go above and beyond, and she did," Deborah Houk said, before bursting into tears.
"I don't know how something like this could happen."
Jordan was still being held in isolation yesterday at the Lawrence County Jail, according to county District Attorney John Bongivengo, and law enforcement officials are continuing to investigate the shooting.
In a criminal complaint released yesterday, Jenessa Houk told police she had just finished putting on her socks and shoes Friday morning when she heard a "big boom."
The 7-year-old girl then asked Jordan what had happened. Earlier, she had seen him carrying a pair of guns.
"He didn't tell me," Jenessa said in an interview with state police, according to the criminal complaint.
She and Jordan then left their two-story farmhouse in New Beaver, Lawrence County and boarded a school bus, apparently unaware that her mother lay dead in a bedroom. She had been shot in the back of the head at close range.
Relatives said Jordan was trained to use guns and knew their danger.
"He knew all about guns, he knew the severity of guns, and he knew what he did," Mrs. Houk said amid sobs. "I'm bitter, but God tells us to forgive. That will come in time."
The family said they have been in contact with Jordan's father, who has maintained that the slaying "had to be an accident, because "Jordan loved Kenzie," Mr. Kraner said.
"Chris is a victim, too," Mr. Kraner said.
Mr. Bongivengo acknowledged jealousy as a possible motive. Jordan's father had raised the boy on his own up until last year, when he started dating Ms. Houk. In December, Mr. Brown and Ms. Houk became engaged.
Ms. Houk was expecting the couple's first child, a boy they planned to name Christopher, in early March.
"Now [Jordan] has to share [his father] with three other girls and potentially a newborn," Mr. Bongivengo said.
The district attorney is still considering alternatives for holding Jordan, although he acknowledged that his options are limited.
Pennsylvania law requires that a juvenile accused of homicide be charged as an adult. And anyone charged with homicide cannot be released on bail while awaiting trial.
Also, the evidence suggests that Ms. Houk's killing was premeditated.
Jordan apparently covered his shotgun with a blanket to keep it concealed when he left his bedroom, Mr. Bongivengo said.
The blue blanket has a quarter-sized hole that appeared to be singed from a shotgun blast, and investigators are testing it for gun residue.
"He took the time to hide what he was doing," Mr. Bongivengo said.
Police found the suspected murder weapon in Jordan's room. When investigators interviewed the boy, he suggested that someone else had committed the crime, saying there had been an unknown truck parked near the home on Friday morning.
Jordan faces a preliminary hearing Thursday. His court-appointed attorney, Dennis Elisco, plans to petition the judge to move the case to juvenile court.
If that happens, Jordan could be taken to a juvenile detention facility. And if he's later convicted, he would be freed when he reaches the age of 21.
But if the case stays in adult criminal court, Jordan would face life in prison if convicted.
Mr. Bongivengo said he hasn't decided if he will argue against a petition to move the case. He's also considering having the boy transferred to a facility -- possibly the Allegheny County Jail -- that has more experience with juveniles accused of major crimes.
Visitation is today from 5 to 8 p.m. at the William F. & Roger M. DeCarbo Funeral Home at 926 Cunningham Ave. in New Castle. A funeral service will be held there at 8 p.m.
Jerome Sherman can be reached at jsherman@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1183. Sadie Gurman can be reached at sgurman@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1878.