Texas Mom Shoots Kids as She's Denied Food Stamps

Mother is dead, 2 children 'very critical'
By Mary Papenfuss,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 7, 2011 3:10 AM CST
Suicidal Mom Shoots Kids As She's Denied Food Stamps
Ramie Marie Grimmer (right) poses with a friend in a Facebook photo. She's now fighting for her life.   (Facebook)

A desperate mom denied food stamps for months shut herself in a Texas welfare office and shot her two children before killing herself. Her daughter, 12, and 10-year-old son are in very critical condition. Rachelle Grimmer, 38, had recently moved from Ohio and had not completed the proper paperwork to obtain aid, said authorities. She was meeting with a caseworker in the Laredo welfare office when she pulled a gun. Police negotiated with her for more than seven hours, and she gradually released everyone from the office except for her children. A SWAT team moved in when they heard three shots, reports AP.

Friends of Grimmer's daughter, Ramie Marie, told KABB-TV that the girl reached out on Facebook for help from inside the building. "Tear gas seriasly," she wrote. Under her Facebook "works" status, Ramie wrote: "May die 2day." Food stamp applicants must fill out an 18-page file and provide proof of such things as employment or rent. The move from another state may have complicated Grimmer's application process, said an official. (More Rachelle Grimmer stories.)

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