Three relatives of Jody Herring, a woman apprehended after allegedly killing a Vermont Department for Children and Families worker, have been found dead.
A 23-year-old woman found two generations of her family slain in a Berlin farmhouse Saturday morning, according to local reports and Vermont State Police.
The victims were identified as Herring?s cousins, Rhonda and Regina Herring, and aunt, Julie Ann Folzorano.
A pile of shell casings were recovered at the gruesome scene where a Berlin police officer found three victims with gunshot wounds.
Jody Herring, 40, of Barre Town is the suspect in Friday's fatal shooting of a DCF worker.
"Both doors were wide open, and I walked into the living room and that's where I saw my mom dead," Tiffany Herring told the Burlington Free Press.
Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin named the victims based on media reports and said they were killed before Jody Herring ambushed social worker Lara Sobel at 4:45 p.m. in the parking lot as she left a family court hearing in Barre City Friday.
He left a vacation with his family to speak with Sobel?s family before going before a press conference late Saturday.
?I just met with Lara?s dad,? Shumlin said. ?I can tell you that Lara was an extraordinary human being. Her dad just said she dedicated her life to Vermont?s children.?
Vermont State Police confirmed that all three victims found at the Berlin home were related to Jody Herring, who is now in custody after allegedly shooting and killing Sobel with a hunting rifle, reportedly upset over losing custody of her 9-year-old daughter.
On her way to Barre City, it?s believed Herring shot and killed her aunt and two cousins. Rhonda struggled before dying, but the Free Press reports Folzorano was found dead in her bed.
Veteran case worker Lara Sobel was gunned down outside a Department for Children and Families hearing Friday in Barre City, Vt.
Tiffany Herring also told the Burlington Free Press her aunt threatened Rhonda Herring for allegedly calling child services about the custody dispute.
"You guys need to stop calling DCF unless you guys are going to have it coming to you,? Jody Herring allegedly told her cousin in a phone call.
Herring allegedly used a bolt-action rifle with scope and shot Sobel twice. Witnesses tackled Herring to the ground and restrained her until police arrived.
Sobel worked on the case where Herring lost custody of her 9-year-old daughter on July 9, but Shumlin said there was no reason to believe Sobel was at risk beyond what she faces on a daily basis.
?To each and every state employee .... We have your backs. We care deeply about you,? Shumlin added.
Sobel, a married mother of two, spent 14 years at the agency, the Free Press added.
?Our prayers and thoughts tonight and in the coming days are with all the employees in Barre, their families and especially the family, friends and co-workers of the employee killed,? Vermont State Employees Association President Shelley Martin said in a message to the membership.
Herring is in custody at Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility and will be arraigned on a first-degree murder charge Monday.
The Vermont state Attorney General?s Office is handling the prosecution because the Washington County state attorney witnessed the attack on Sobel and declined to participate in the case based on ethical grounds.
Shumlin ordered security to be reviewed at state buildings and said Department for Children and Families workers will only make emergency calls accompanied by law enforcement over the weekend.
The DCF has dealt with recent criticisms over its handling of cases, which prompted a new law.
A special legislative committee was set up to investigate the state child welfare system after the deaths last year of two toddlers who had been involved with DCF, 2-year-old Dezirae Sheldon, of Poultney, and 15-month-old Peighton Geraw, of Winooski. Murder charges are pending against Dezirae's stepfather and Peighton's mother, who have pleaded not guilty.
The new child safety law shifts the state's priority in protecting children, focusing on their well-being instead of on an imperative to reunite them with their families.
Originally Posted by bowieluva
Reply With Quote
over some of those comments. They do read like they are coming from a place of experience. Still, all they heard was she lost custody - I haven't found an article yet that said why - and right away it's "good for her!". Um, you don't know why she lost custody. And the stricter controls were due to two child deaths because DFC failed.
