Maryland Family Dead in Apparent Murder-Suicide

Father cited 'job issues' in suicide note

(NEWSER) - Seven family members were found dead in their Los Angeles home today, apparent victims of a murder-suicide, police say. Police think a man shot and killed his wife and five children, and then turned the weapon on himself, the Los Angeles Times reports. The child victims were an 8-year-old, 5-year-old twins, and 2-year-old twins. The father contacted a local news station before shooting himself and left a note that referred to work problems. More»

Police say 4th child released before woman drove into Hudson River

(NEWSER) - The bodies of a New York woman and her three young children were pulled from the Hudson River last night after what police believe was a murder-suicide sparked by a domestic dispute. The mother drove her minivan and the children—two boys, ages 5 and 2, and an 11-month-old girl—into the river after apparently letting a fourth child, a 10-year-old boy, out of the vehicle, police say. (Updated: The boy escaped through a window .) More»

Localities sell your unpaid bills to investors who foreclose

(NEWSER) - Vicki Valentine's father paid off the mortgage on their home a quarter-century ago, but she's been foreclosed on and evicted anyway, thanks to a $362 unpaid water bill. Valentine's one of a growing number falling prey to “tax sales,” the Huffington Post reports. Basically, the city sold Valentine's debt to an investment bank, which piled on fees and interest until the bill was more than $3,600. When Valentine couldn't pay, it seized the house. More»

(NEWSER) - Steve McNair's girlfriend shot and killed him while he slept on the couch before turning the gun on herself, the Tennessean reports. Sahel Kazemi, 20, believed McNair was seeing yet another woman and was worried about paying her rent and car loans, say police. “We do believe there was evidence that she was spinning out of control,” said Nashville's police chief. More»

Father detailed mortgage, credit card woes in notes

(NEWSER) - The Maryland man who murdered his family before shooting and killing himself complained of his financial troubles in notes left at the scene, the Washington Post reports. Christopher Wood’s family was at least $460,000 in debt from two mortgages and credit card charges. The family owned a Florida home that had been foreclosed, police said. More»