Missouri police investigate death of mom, 2 kids

Missouri police investigate death of mom, 2 kids

GLENDALE, Mo. (AP) — A major case squad probing the shooting deaths of a suburban St. Louis mother and her two children unleashed more than 20 investigators Tuesday, but authorities who originally viewed the case as a murder-suicide said it was too early to draw any conclusions.

Glendale police Lt. Tim Fagan said Mitch Murch called police Monday after hearing gunshots inside the family’s house. He told authorities he found the bodies of his wife and two children, all with gunshot wounds.

Catherine Murch, 42, was pronounced dead at the scene, and her two children were pronounced dead at hospitals. St. Louis County Medical Examiner Mary Case identified them as 10-year-old Mitchell Murch and 8-year-old Mary Claire Murch.

Police originally said the deaths were being investigated as a case of murder-suicide. Fagan said Murch has been interviewed and is cooperating with investigators. It wasn’t immediately clear whether Murch had an attorney, but Fagan said police “don’t consider him a suspect.”

Murch did not immediately return a phone message from The Associated Press seeking comment.

Police originally said Murch was reading inside the home when he heard gunfire. He then found the bodies of his wife and son on the home’s first floor and his daughter on the second level. First responders arrived at the home and found Murch trying to resuscitate his son.

The case squad issued a news release Tuesday saying that it had assigned more than 20 investigators to the case.

Fagan said the size of the probe was necessary to “get a very clear understanding of what happened.”

The deaths shocked the affluent neighborhood, where the Murches’ stately, two-story brick home sits on a large, neatly manicured lot. Court records show the Murches bought the home for $764,900 in 2007.