Lesbian family viciously slaughtered in their own home at Christmas

[DonViejo]

Source: LGBTQ Nation




By Bil Browning · Thursday, December 28, 2017

Two women, ages 36 and 22, were slaughtered in their apartment along with their 5 and 11-year-old children. According to the Times Union, all four were bound and their throats slit.

Authorities have been tight lipped about the slaying. So far they haven’t released the names of the victims until their families have been notified. An older son wasn’t at home at the time of the killings, but police did not say how old he is or where he was.

The four bodies were found after family called the landlord to check on them the day after Christmas. They told the landlord neither woman was answering phone calls. After entering the apartment and finding the bodies, the landlord quickly called the police.

“There are indications at the crime scene that this was not a random act,” Troy, New York Police Chief James Tedesco said. “We are certainly appealing to people in the community that would have any knowledge as to what may have transpired there to contact us as soon as possible.”


Read more: https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2017/12/lesbian-family-viciously-slaughtered-home-christmas

[louis-t]

1. How horrible.

[janterry]

2. Oh, no - I had not realized that there were children, too

That's horrific. How people could do such a thing...........and (also) to children

[JNelson6563]

3. WTF. This is beyond horrible. omg.

Sick. Beyond sick.

[bucolic_frolic]

4. Violence

often suggests a lover's angle, or at least as the article says, not a random act; the victims were not unknown to the assailant(s).

[RKP5637]

5. Horrific! What incredibly sick minds to do this. n/t

[bluestarone]

50. hate to say it but

the USA is full of fucking people that kill like this!!!! WE WILL NEVER BE THE SAME! SO SAD

[RKP5637]

52. It's become a damn scary place and highly unstable. Many people are so damn hateful and others

murderous. And this ass we have for president is creating all of the hostilities and divisions he can. The guy is a train wreck nationally and internationally.

[RKP5637]

6. Look at the comments in the link to this article. F'en scary. n/t

[dalton99a]

8. No shit

[RKP5637]

16. The cops should also be investigating that guy posting all the crap. He sounds like he's

the next sick fuck to commit a heinous crime the way he's acting out in his posts.

[marble falls]

28. Read most of them, the two idots - how did they not get locked out and hidden? I agree with RKP5637.

If I were investigating this crime I'd be looking hard at those two.

[RKP5637]

31. Yep! I have mixed feelings about predictive analysis for potential crime, but when I read

stuff like this, it leads me to believe some should be investigated.

[marble falls]

32. Agreed, some - obvious ones like these. There's just toooo much glee in their tone, especialy ...

from "Anderson", he almost can't contain himself.

[RKP5637]

34. They get high on hatred, major endorphins flowing, and they try to mask it with religion, etc.

knowingly or unknowingly.

[marble falls]

35. And one can hear/read that they are grinning ear to ear.

[jmowreader]

40. "Anderson"?

It wouldn't happen to be "Pastor" Steven "Fatwa" Anderson, who ordered his acolytes to kill off all the gays by Christmas so the Baby Jesus wouldn't haz a sad on his birthday, now would it?

[marble falls]

41. I believe we got two different pieces of work here.

[old guy]

7. Welcome to tRumps Amerikka!

[WiseElder]

9. So sad what hate will do.

I am liberal in every way but would be fine with the death penalty here for the perps.

[niyad]

33. welcome to du.

in some cases, I might even be fine with the rack beforehand.

[liberalhistorian]

10. No words for how utterly

horrific this is. And that poor landlord, having to find them like that.

Does anyone else think that one possibility might be a hate crime, considering the hate and hostility being whipped up against the LGBTQ community this year (well, I know it's always existed, but a certain president and his minions have especially whipped it up this past year)?

[pandr32]

11. How horrible!

To think how terrified they must have all been makes me shudder. Who could do such a monstrous thing?

Then I think about how much hate is openly promoted and nurtured in our country right now and I worry that we may see more victims.

[RKP5637]

14. If I were a vacationer, I would think twice before visiting the US. There are way too many wackos

in the US.

[pandr32]

18. Many are already traveling elsewhere

In September the NYT reported that travel to the US from European countries was down 10.1 percent.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/19/travel/tourism-united-states-international-decline.html

[RKP5637]

20. Not surprised at all. What the rest of the world hears today from the US is hatefulness,

selfishness and a government in disarray. Besides, other countries have more to offer these days.

[Wounded Bear]

19. As I hear it, tourism to the US has been down all year...

Sick people perpetrating such violence.

[RKP5637]

21. Yep, I really can't imagine the US in the #1 spot on anyone's list, unless maybe they

have relatives, etc. here to visit with, or places they have always wanted to visit. Today, I see the US as cranky and cold, and sometimes dangerous because of such pockets of hatred.

[Irish_Dem]

12. Not a random act the police are saying. So they were targeted or knew the murderer.

Horrific horrific crime.
I hope they find the person(s) responsible.

[Stuart G]

13. This happened in Troy, New York...here is another link from NY Post:

Troy is a suburb of Albany NY.


https://nypost.com/2017/12/27/lesbian-couple-2-kids-found-killed-in-basement-apartment/

[HockeyMom]

17. Troy is basically a College Town

Rensselaer Polytech Institute is there. When my husband's nephew taught at SUNY Albany, he and his Partner lived in Troy.

[oberliner]

73. Troy is definitely not a college town

By any stretch of the imagination.

[djg21]

80. This is right.

It’s an old industrial city that has seen better days. There has been some revitalization of the downtown area over the past decade, but parts of Troy, including parts of the Lansingburg area in which the murders occurred, are pretty depressed and can be rough.

[PragmaticDem]

15. Horrific!

[Maraya1969]

22. Texas GOP running for governor said he would, "Gladly kill homosexuals" as the Bible teaches

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2017/12/24/gop-candidate-for-tx-gov-id-gladly-execute-gay-people-like-the-bible-says/

Maybe the person who did this was a friend of this guy.


The race to replace Greg Abbott as Governor of Texas already has a number of candidates who plan to run in the primaries. While most are Democrats, Abbott himself will face a Republican primary challenger in Larry SECEDE Kilgore. (His middle name is literally “SECEDE.”) Four years ago, Kilgore took 1.4% of the primary votes compared to Abbott’s 91.5%, so you can call this an uphill climb, but Kilgore also takes the party’s anti-LGBTQ agenda to its logical extremes.

[Eliot Rosewater]

26. And I just wrote a post elsewhere making sure people understand ANY democrat

is who you vote for in November.

What some dont get is the alternative to ANY democrat is death for some.

[shenmue]

23. Awful

[geardaddy]

24. WTF

This is horrible!

[marble falls]

25. Its beyond any sort of comprehension. I just cannot wrap my mind around it. It challanges my....

opposition to the death penalty.

[getagrip_already]

27. this sounds personal....

it doesn't dound liike some nutcase pissed off at the gays. Whoever did trhis knew the family, and wanted at least one of them to suffer the deaths of the others before being killed.

Family and friends must be devastated. But someone knows the [erson who did this. Hopefully they will get arrested quickly.

[djg21]

36. Jumping to conclusions.

Last edited Thu Dec 28, 2017, 02:13 PM - Edit history (1)

Let the police investigate. This crime may be unrelated to the sexuality of the victims. Troy, Albany and Schenectady have a significant gang problem, and is a drug trafficking hub given its proximity its to NYC and points north. My first guess is that this is gang and/or drug related.

[rainlillie]

38. I reside in the capital district

And we have our share of crime. You're right we shouldn't speculate. The victims sexuality may not have been a factor.

[irisblue]

39. Why do you think that?

Do you know of specific drug/ gang connections for that geographic area? Asking a calm neutral voice, since I don't know more then I read in the newspaper articles. Thank you.

[djg21]

47. Yes.

There is significant gang and drug-related activity in the capital region. Albany, Troy and Schenectady are relatively large cities within a couple of hours from NYC. Drugs are transported from NYC, and them distributed north into upstate NY and New England.

The headline in the OP is from the LGTBQ news and is unfortunate to the extent that it prematurely suggests that lthe victims’ sexuality was a cause of the murders in order to promote the LGTBQ New’s own agenda. Maybe wait until the facts are in. There could be any number of motives at play here.

[getagrip_already]

46. I said it probably wasn't related to their suxuality...

But it's doubtful it was gang related. A gang would have just shot them and been done with it, and they wouldn't have a reason to kill the kids unless one of the parents stole from them.

But using a knife is a very personal crime. The cartels don't tend to use knives except to torture, and this wasn't torture. They kill in very obvious ways.

[Demsrule86]

56. Really? The manner of death indicates extreme hatred.

[djg21]

57. So what, and how do you know?

Even if the the manner of death does indicate extreme hatred, there is no basis at this time to suggest that the hatred resulted from the sexuality of the adult victims.

The fact is that a crime isn’t a hate crime merely because the victim is gay or the member of some other minority, and to persist that it is in the absence of concrete evidence is vacuous. A law enforcement investigation will be conducted and the perpetrators likely will be found. Maybe we should wait until then to cast this crime as a hate crime so some can attempt to score political points? (note lowercase “p”).

[Demsrule86]

58. I read the story. It was gruesome...it has all the hallmarks of a hate crime.

I hope the cops don't cry 'gang' as a way not to investigate thoroughly...many LGBTQ have been murdered this year and other years as well. I have a Lesbian daughter in college who lives with her girlfriend. She has faced hatred and threats...I fear for her safety everyday.

[Irish_Dem]

51. Yes the police said it was not a random crime.

I agree, it sounds personal.

[joshcryer]

54. Stabbing crimes usually are unless they're random acts.

And the police clearly don't think it was a random act. So it's unlikely to be a robber who just suddenly decided to kill an entire family (rather than running). I'm going with jilted lover finally snapping. If he doesn't kill himself we'll find out, because stabbing crimes leave behind lots of evidence (DNA in particular).

[Demsrule86]

59. or a fanatic who heeds the cry to 'kill the Gays"

[Kittycow]

29. ...

[Throck]

30. Local Paper

http://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Cops-search-for-clues-homicide-scene-in-Troy-12456933.php#item-85307-tbla-23

[djg21]

37. Victims IDed

http://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Troy-police-expected-to-identify-homicide-victims-12459402.php

TROY — Police on Thursday released the names of the victims in a quadruple homicide on Second Avenue.

Shanta Myers, 36, her children Shanise Myers, 5, andJeremiah “JJ” Myers, 11, and Shanta Myer’s partner Brandi Mells, 22, were found dead Tuesday in their basement apartment at 158 Second Ave. in Troy. Police still aren’t saying how the victims died, nor any details on possible suspects.
Troy Chief John Tedesco has assured the public there is no imminent danger as it appears the victims were targeted.

[roamer65]

42. Life in prison for the murderer/s.

In the general population.

[7962]

44. That or the needle. nt

[djg21]

48. Not an option in NYS.

Nt

[7962]

43. Why point out that they were lesbians? Because its an LGBT website?

Its ridiculous to do anything but ID the victims until the officials have evidence as to why they were killed. If they were targeted because of their sexuality then publicize it at that time.
There were several other families killed over the past few days and nowhere are they ID'd as "heterosexual".
Similar to the article a few months back about "Only Asians on Hawaii 5-O fired". They were fired because they demanded equal pay to the show's 2 stars, not because they were asian.

[LanternWaste]

53. You then believe all demographics of victims are irrelevant?

You then believe all demographics of victims are irrelevant? If not, what are the objective distinctions between relevant and the irrelevant, and on what are those distinctions measured?

[7962]

61. Is the fact pertinent to the crime? So far, no. Simple rules of journalism.

"family killed". Would we see "white family killed" unless their race was a factor in their death? No.
The facts as they are now, being lesbians has nothing to do with the story. They're no different than you or I. Gay & lesbian people dont WANT to be labeled any differently.
If they were famous or well known, then its different.

This is a savage murder of a family.

[Demsrule86]

55. It sounds like they may have been targeted because of their sexuality.

[7962]

60. Nothing in the article states that. Has something new been revealed?

If not then pointing out they're a lesbian family makes no sense.

[djg21]

62. Stop making stuff up

I’m sorry for your daughter, but there is absolutely no basis at this time to ascribe motive or suggest that this was a hate crime. The suspects haven’t even been identified and the police investigation remains ongoing.

For the LGBTQ News to suggest that this was a hate crime with a wildly misleading headline in order to further it’s political agenda was disingenuous and poor journalism.

Unless you have expertise in forensics or criminal psychology and have had an opportunity to visit the crime scene in Troy and examine all of the evidence, perhaps you should wait on the outcome of the police investigation before offering conjecture and conspiracy theories about the police failing to adequately investigate.

[Demsrule86]

63. Having an opinion or making what is certainly a reasonable suggestion...many LGBTQ have

been murdered because of who they are... is 'not making stuff up'...it is raising a possibility...no different than the "it might be gang related" possibility...no idea why this disturbs you so much. It is a possibility. Also, it is a free country...the LGBTQ news suggested it as a possiblity and it was a Lesbian family who face all sorts of hate these days in Trump's America. You have people calling for the murder of the 'Gays'. I can have an opinion on any subject I choose and post about it as I please as long as I follow DU guidelines which I always do.

[elehhhhna]

77. (don't feed the tr0lls)

[Demsrule86]

78. Thanks, you are correct.

[SummerSnow]

45. STOP IT STOP IT STOP IT!, STOP ALL THIS HATE!!!!!!!!!

[Demsrule86]

49. My youngest daughter is a Lesbian. She lives with her girlfriend who is a sweet young lady.

I am so afraid for them in Trump's America...what sort of monster would do such a thing? Some Trump supporters went to my daugter's college after finding out where the Gay student group met...they came with guns and horrific signs. I called the president's office...and went up there with my camera the following week. As soon as they saw me taking pictures (to put on the internet) most left...some had guns. Security moved in and made them leave...as far as I know they have not been back.

[Skittles]

64. America is stronger than Donald F***ing Trump

more of us have your daughter's back than have Trump's back

we must stop Russia's efforts and GET OUT THE VOTE.

[Demsrule86]

65. Thank you. I know what you say is true...making me get all teary.

I am just so afraid for her. She is not afraid...she is courageous.

[Skittles]

66. we will trump HATRED

Trumpsters make me SICK - they have no IDEA what it means to be AMERICAN.

[Demsrule86]

67. No they don't...thank you, I was feeling a bit hopeless today.

We will trump their hatred.

[oberliner]

68. Why is their sexual orientation relevant?

[jcmaine72]

69. Because we're living in Trump's America, which is a veritable hothouse of

homophobia, racism, sexism, Islamophobia, etc. Yes, atrocities like this one against LGBT people aren't new, but they are far more likely it seems in the white supremacist CIS male centric America that Trump and his gaggle of sycophantic, reptilian deplorables are trying to forge.

[moriah]

70. Because the police indicated this wasn't a random crime. They were targeted.

Whether it was directly or indirectly, or not at all, related to the fact the two women were in a romantic relationship together is unknown.

But say the father of the kids did it -- motive could be he didn't want his kids in that environment, or felt like he had to prove his manhood to the woman who found women were more to her liking. Indirectly a hate crime, more personal motivation.

Or they could have been targeted by a stranger because of seeing two women raising kids.

Or they could have been targeted because they seemed like easy marks, regardless of their relationship. We don't know.

But the cops are saying they were targeted for this attack.

Is it relevant to mention a victim of a violent murder was a trans woman? Yes, because they are often the targets of hate crimes -- TDOR is all about that. What type of surgery they may or may not have had would only be relevant if the victim remains unidentified (Google Julie Doe, from the 80s in Florida), but the demographic is too often targeted for it to not be mentioned in a violent assault or murder.

I certainly hope it has nothing to do with their relationship. But there *is* more relevance than there would be if the police were saying this was random. They are specifically saying it wasn't, though not going into details about why they are certain of it.

[burrowowl]

71. Hope the murderer is caught soon

and gets life and no parole!

[djg21]

72. 2 arrested in killing of Troy family

TROY — Two people will be arraigned Saturday morning for roles in the brutal slayings of two women and two children earlier this week, police said.

http://www.timesunion.com/news/article/2-arrested-in-killing-of-Troy-family-12463374.php

[GulfCoast66]

74. Obviously any speculation we do now is just guessing

What we do know is that most murders of women are committed by males who know them. Especially vicious stabbings.

My guess would be jealous male with the whole if I cannot have her no one can attitude.

But we will know soon as there have been arrests made.

[djg21]

75. Perps charged with 1st Degree Murder

Justin C. Mann and James W. White are each charged with a count of first-degree murder and four counts of second-degree murder, according to police.
. . . .

The reason for the first-degree murder charge could not be immediately determined.

During a press conference, Troy Police Chief John Tedesco said the two were apprehended without incident at 627 Hamilton St. in Schenectady. He said one of the defendants knew one of the victims but would not elaborate.

If the police charged Murder 1st, they likely know why the crime was committed. NY’s murder 1st statute is here: http://codes.findlaw.com/ny/penal-law/pen-sect-125-27.html

[GulfCoast66]

76. Glad they caught them

And as normal when a woman is murdered, she knew her killer.

[friendly_iconoclast]

82. As normal when *anyone* is murdered, they knew their killer

[GulfCoast66]

83. So true

But too often women are killed by men who supposedly loved them. But really just wanted to control them.

[Rhiannon12866]

79. More local coverage - Police: Two arrested for killings of four in Troy

TROY — Two men were arrested Saturday on murder charges in the deaths of two women and two children who were found dead in their upstate New York apartment.

Justin Mann and James White were arrested in their hometown, Schenectady, and pleaded not guilty in Troy City Court.

According to the Times Union, Troy Police Chief John Tedesco said one of the defendants knew one of the victims. He declined to elaborate.

Information given in court said the killings took place at about 9 p.m., Dec. 21. It wasn't until Tuesday, five days later, that a property manager found 36-year-old Shanta Myers; her children, 11-year-old Jeremiah Myers and 5-year-old Shanise Myers; and 22-year-old Brandi Mells in a basement apartment along the Hudson River, just north of Albany. Police say Myers and Mells were in a relationship.

Tedesco and District Attorney Joel Abelove, who appeared at a press conference, declined to answer questions about a possible motive and the method of the killings.


More: http://poststar.com/news/local/police-two-arrested-for-killings-of-four-in-troy/article_14a15ff0-ed55-11e7-83ae-c39ff3e2c853.html#tracking-source=home-top-story-2

[Blue_Tires]

81. "Economic concerns"...

[stevenleser]

84. At least one report says the victims were "targeted". We'll see. nt

[djg21]

85. It appears to have been a robbery, unrelated to sexual preference.

At least according to preliminary media reports.

“The Troy killings, in contrast, appear at this point to have involved the simpler motive of robbery and burglary, though details have not yet emerged from police or prosecutors.”

http://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Two-quadruple-killings-two-different-tales-12494327.php