Authorities Identified the Gunman
The person responsible was 44-year-old Alan Michael Smith, the adult son of Dana and Barbara and Megan's brother, according to reports identifying the gunman and examining the circumstances before the killings. Authorities said Alan showed up at the home unannounced at around 6 p.m. while his relatives were gathered.
He then opened fire, killing his parents, grandmother, sister, nieces and nephews. Officials and relatives said Alan subsequently set the home on fire. As emergency responders closed in, Alan turned the gun on himself before police could take him into custody.
Kent described what Alan carried out as a "very complex" attack. The perpetrator was found dead while authorities were searching for the person responsible.
The revelation that the suspected gunman was not a stranger but a member of the very family that had been gathering together only deepened the shock, and relatives say there had been troubling signs before that Sunday.
