Victims died of blunt force trauma
- mbbaker@sunherald.com
BAY ST. LOUIS -- The victims of a triple homicide over the weekend at a Citizen Street home died of blunt force trauma to the head, Hancock County Coroner Jim Faulk said Monday.
Though authorities released the cause of deaths Monday, they still were not saying whether they suspect the victims, identified as Wilton Bernard Jr., 69, his wife, Jeanie Bernard, 66, and Kathleen Deese, 50, were beaten over the head with a hammer.
Bay St. Louis Police Chief Michael Denardo said twice-convicted felon, Anthony Garrett, 41, is the only suspect in the killing of his mother, stepfather and girlfriend. Deese was Garrett’s girlfriend.
Though authorities released the cause of deaths Monday, they still were not saying whether they suspect the victims, identified as Wilton Bernard Jr., 69, his wife, Jeanie Bernard, 66, and Kathleen Deese, 50, were beaten over the head with a hammer.
Bay St. Louis Police Chief Michael Denardo said twice-convicted felon, Anthony Garrett, 41, is the only suspect in the killing of his mother, stepfather and girlfriend. Deese was Garrett’s girlfriend.
“We’re talking to family members,” Denardo said. “We are talking
to witnesses. Our investigation is basically to determine the motive.”
After the slayings, Garrett drove to Kiln-Waveland Cutoff Road, jumped a fence and climbed a cellphone tower before plunging some 300 feet to his death. Hancock County sheriff’s deputies and Waveland police responded to the scene and attempted to talk Garrett down. They are trying to determine whether Garrett slipped and fell while attempting to climb back down.
Witnesses reported hearing Garrett shout to onlookers, including law enforcement officials, saying he had killed his family with a hammer and had spent several years in prison.
According to the Mississippi Sex Offender Registry, Garrett was convicted of sexual battery in 1985 and again in 1988. He had listed his mother’s address as his own when he last complied with sex offender registry requirements in March.
The Bernards were retired, kept mostly to themselves and had lived at the Citizen Street home for about 10 years.
Also Monday, a judge set a $1 million bond for Virginia M. Hill, a 37-year-old woman arrested on a murder charge in the shooting death Saturday of her boyfriend at the home they shared on Orchid Street in the Kiln community.
Chief Investigator Glenn Grannan said Hill was carrying an assault rifle when she walked to a neighbor’s home around 3:30 a.m. Saturday and asked to use their phone to call 911.
Grannan said that investigation was ongoing. He also said he could not immediately find any evidence of previous domestic-related incidents between Hill and her boyfriend, identified as Dustin Jarrell, 34. Jarrell died of a gunshot wound to the head.
Sheriff’s officials said they found Jarrell’s body in bed, under the covers.
Also Monday, the investigation was continuing into the shooting death Saturday night of Louis Matranga during a dispute in front of a home on Kiln-Waveland Cutoff Road. Matranga at one time had been a paid confidential informant for Hancock County authorities.
“We’re trying to put what we got together right now,” Grannan said Monday. “We’ve got different stories.”
Authorities said there was some type of dispute between Matranga and several others prior to the shooting. Grannan said authorities are trying to determine whether the shooter acted in self-defense or should face a criminal charge.
After the slayings, Garrett drove to Kiln-Waveland Cutoff Road, jumped a fence and climbed a cellphone tower before plunging some 300 feet to his death. Hancock County sheriff’s deputies and Waveland police responded to the scene and attempted to talk Garrett down. They are trying to determine whether Garrett slipped and fell while attempting to climb back down.
Witnesses reported hearing Garrett shout to onlookers, including law enforcement officials, saying he had killed his family with a hammer and had spent several years in prison.
According to the Mississippi Sex Offender Registry, Garrett was convicted of sexual battery in 1985 and again in 1988. He had listed his mother’s address as his own when he last complied with sex offender registry requirements in March.
The Bernards were retired, kept mostly to themselves and had lived at the Citizen Street home for about 10 years.
Also Monday, a judge set a $1 million bond for Virginia M. Hill, a 37-year-old woman arrested on a murder charge in the shooting death Saturday of her boyfriend at the home they shared on Orchid Street in the Kiln community.
Chief Investigator Glenn Grannan said Hill was carrying an assault rifle when she walked to a neighbor’s home around 3:30 a.m. Saturday and asked to use their phone to call 911.
Grannan said that investigation was ongoing. He also said he could not immediately find any evidence of previous domestic-related incidents between Hill and her boyfriend, identified as Dustin Jarrell, 34. Jarrell died of a gunshot wound to the head.
Sheriff’s officials said they found Jarrell’s body in bed, under the covers.
Also Monday, the investigation was continuing into the shooting death Saturday night of Louis Matranga during a dispute in front of a home on Kiln-Waveland Cutoff Road. Matranga at one time had been a paid confidential informant for Hancock County authorities.
“We’re trying to put what we got together right now,” Grannan said Monday. “We’ve got different stories.”
Authorities said there was some type of dispute between Matranga and several others prior to the shooting. Grannan said authorities are trying to determine whether the shooter acted in self-defense or should face a criminal charge.
Read more here: http://www.sunherald.com/2012/04/09/3872250/victims-died-of-blunt-force-trauma.html#storylink=cpy
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