GRANTSVILLE — Three children were among the four people who were found dead after a Friday night shooting in Grantsville, police confirmed Saturday morning.
Of the victims found in a home on Eastmoor Drive near Main Street, one was an adult female, two were juvenile females and one a juvenile male, said Grantsville Police Cpl. Rhonda Fields.
Police responded after a person, who is unrelated to the family, called 911 after coming to the house. That person drove an adult victim with injuries and the suspected shooter, who is under the age of 18, to the hospital, where the teen was taken into custody, Fields said.
There are no previous reports of police incidents or criminal history at the home, Fields said.
As of Saturday afternoon, police still hadn’t released the names of the victims or who was arrested, but local social media pages have swelled with outpouring of support for a family member who posted on Facebook he couldn’t get a hold of his family after he learned about the shooting on social media.
The relative posted he was with his father who was hospitalized in stable condition, thanking the community for their prayers and support.
Shockwaves of heartache reverberated throughout the tight-knit Tooele County community.
“There are no words to describe our heartbreak and grief,” Jason Killian, a stake president with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, said in a statement. “We are devastated and so deeply saddened by what has occurred. We love this family, and will support them and the rest of our small community as we mourn together.”
Killian asked for “consideration and sensitivity” as community members express their condolences.
“We pray for this family and each member of our close community, and invite any who may be struggling to reach out to us for spiritual counseling, and to seek care from mental health professionals for any help they may need,” Killian said. “We are grateful for our faith in Jesus Christ, who is with us in our grief and we know He can heal our broken hearts.”
The Tooele School District offered condolences to the family on Twitter Saturday afternoon, noting the district’s crisis team has been working to ensure students and staff will have counseling services in the Grantsville area and in schools throughout the district on Tuesday.
“We are deeply saddened and shocked to hear of the events that occurred in Grantsville last night,” the district tweeted. “We want to express our sincere condolences to those who have been impacted. It’s important that we stand together to care & support each other through this difficult time.”
Patty Deakin-Daley, the administrator of the widely used community Facebook page Tooele County 411, in a post Saturday morning urged community members to refrain from posting about the shooting on the page, noting the “eldest child of the family learned of his family’s tragedy on Facebook, something no one should ever have to do.”
“Please comment your love, support, condolences and lifting messages here to support him, and to help him get through unimaginable pain and grief,” Deakin-Daley wrote. “We are a loving, kind, and supportive community … Let us rally around this young man and his dad.”
Hundreds of commenters commented on the post, expressing thoughts, prayers and love for the family.
Deakin-Daley told KSL there has been a wave of Tooele County residents asking her ways they can help, offering to bring the father and son meals, a place to stay so they don’t have to return to the home, and help with funeral expenses.
“The outpouring is definitely strong, and I would expect nothing less from this community,” Deakin-Daley said. “This community is the kindest most compassionate place I’ve ever been.”
By Saturday morning, all trace of a crime scene had been cleared from the Grantsville neighborhood and the home where police worked through the night. No crime scene tape or police barricades were visible outside the home. Nothing seemed amiss except for a set of blinds leaning askew against the inside of the front window. A white van with stickers on the back window of a seven-member stick figure family sat in the home’s driveway.
Family shattered: 4 dead, 1 injured, 1 in custody in Grantsville shooting
Four members of a family are dead and a fifth is hospitalized after a shooting that rocked a tranquil, close-knit neighborhood.
Fields told reporters Friday night that multiple agencies responded to a home just after 7 p.m. after neighbors heard gunshots. She didn’t know if the call for help came from inside the house or from concerned neighbors.
Police arrested a teenage relative shortly after they arrived at the home.
Grantsville Mayor Brent Marshall, who came to the scene to speak with responders late Friday night, confirmed the victims and the shooter are all related.
“It’s an unfortunate tragedy that has taken place here this evening,” said Marshall. “And I’m sure it will take days or even longer to try and piece together what brought all of this on and why it happened, if we ever get to know why it happened. It’s upsetting. This is normally a very quiet neighborhood, and any time you have children involved in something, it becomes very emotional, very fast.”
Our hearts are broken by the horrible news coming out Grantsville tonight. We mourn over the loss of innocent lives.
— Gov. Gary Herbert (@GovHerbert) January 18, 2020
Gov. Gary Herbert tweeted out condolences and support about 10:30 p.m. Friday.
“Our hearts are broken by the horrible news coming out of Grantsville tonight,” he said. “We mourn over the loss of innocent lives. Our Department of Public Safety and State Crime Lab are assisting local law enforcement with the investigation. Additional information will be released by local authorities as it becomes available.”
This story will be updated throughout the day.
Contributing: Tania Dean, KSL TV
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