Whisper
#byefelicia
@cubby
this is sad
both parents getting older and worried about who would care for the kid they loved and doted on was just to much
Id bet this was a joint decision
https://news.yahoo.com/four-members-suburban-chicago-family-found-shot-death-165443914.htmlFour members of a suburban Chicago family were found shot dead in their home, with one death ruled a suicide and the rest homicides, police and coroner officials said
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Local media said the victims were an elderly couple and their two severely disabled adult children. Police said they were investigating the incident in Elmhurst
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but there was no threat or danger to others.
The four bodies were discovered Saturday evening after Elmhurst police went to the home for a "well being check
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Frank Stack, 82, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, while Joan Stack, 82, Mary Stack, 57, and Francis Stack, 49, had all been murdered, according to preliminary results from the DuPage County Coroner's office. All had been shot in the head.
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coroner's office could not say whether Frank Stack had shot the others - referring those questions to police
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Police had given the youngest victim's age as 48.
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citing DuPage County court records, said the adult children of the elderly couple suffered from severe mental disabilities and were in residential care programs but came home nearly every weekend.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/subur...d-in-elmhurst-home-20140830-story.html#page=1[...]
82-year-old man fatally shot himself and three members of his family in the head Saturday night in a murder-suicide in west suburban Elmhurst
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According to the DuPage County coroner's office, an autopsy conducted today determined that Frank Stack, 82, committed suicide after shooting his wife Joan, 82, and their two adult children, Frank Jr., 48, and Mary 57. Everyone was shot in the head
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Stack, who neighbors and acquaintances consistently described as a loving and devoted father, was a retired utility crew leader and married to Joan Stack
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The Stacks had four children. Their oldest, Mary, and youngest, Frank Jr., who was the only son, were born severely disabled and in need of constant care,
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and a 1987 story in the Chicago Tribune. The parents provided much of that care during their children's lives.
Pete Sterchele, 52, the Stack's next-door neighbor, said Frank Stack was a "real good guy."
"Some people are just good,"
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"They have it in them and that was just him."
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he was aware of the constant care needed by Frank Jr. and Mary. Asked what he wanted people to know about the family, he said Frank Stack "took care of his children."
"He loved that family very much,"
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"I think he did what he believed was the right thing to do."
Sterchele said police told him that Frank Stack had killed his wife and two children, called in his act to police, and then killed himself. He believes it was a mercy killing.
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Police found four people dead inside the home with "visible gunshot wounds," according to a statement released by the police department overnight.
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identified by police as Francis and Joan Stack, both 82; Francis Stack Jr., 48; and Mary Stack, 57. Police found a weapon inside the home.
Ruth walked away from the press conference without answering questions.
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May 1990, Frank and Joan Stack filed paperwork in DuPage County Circuit Court seeking to have Marty and Francis Jr. eclared legally disabled. A judge granted their request the next month, allowing the parents to serve as their children's appointed guardians. During the next 24 years, report after report documents the couple's steadfast devotion to their children
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son was diagnosed with a "profound level" of mental impairment and was prone to seizures throughout his life, according to court records. He could never speak full words, the records state, but Mary managed to communicate through limited sign language and a few spoken words, including "mommy" and "tree." Both children could walk, see and hear.
Though Mary was considered less disabled than her brother, she had the IQ of a toddler at 35
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The parents cared for them in their Elmhurst home well into their children's adulthood, ensuring each was enrolled in developmental, educational and recreation programs for several decades through the Ray Graham Association in Elmhurst.
In annual progress reports filed each May, court-appointed monitors, medical and developmental professionals praised the parents' efforts to give their children access to the best programs and services available in their community. The experts described the parents as "very involved," "very caring," and "very supportive,"
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her daughter, Joan Stack in 1991 wrote, "Mary enjoys music, people, magazines and T.V. She loves being in her yard, especially swinging on our porch swing. She enjoys visiting her sisters and their families ..."
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records capture happy family times, such as a 1997 vacation to Door County, Wis., and regular trips to the local library, parks and listening to music and shopping together.
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late 1990s, with the parents both in their late 60s, they made the decision to find alternative housing for their disabled adult children.
"Francis Sr. and Joan Stack, Mary's parents, have indicated concern for Mary's future in light of their failing health and the fact that they are getting older. This concern is their reason for seeking residential placement for her," a 1999 report
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Mary Stack, then 42, moved out of her parents home in December 1999 for the first time and into an Addison residential facility with three other disabled women - including one she had attended programs with as a child. The home had 24-hour Ray Graham staff.
Her brother, Frank Jr., had moved into a similar residential facility in Addison about two years earlier.
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both disabled adults came home to Elmhurst nearly every weekend and for holidays and family vacations.
"Frank is taken home every weekend," one court-appointed monitor wrote in a May 2008 report. "Meeting with Mr. and Mrs. Stack was a very pleasant experience.
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Both of the Stack's adult children were moved to another Ray Graham Association residential facility after their original group homes closed. According to court documents filed just four months ago, Mary Stack was living in one in Woodridge, while her brother was nearby in Villa Park. Both still spent their weekends and holidays at home with their parents in Elmhurst.
Kim Zoeller, President and CEO of the Ray Graham Association, confirmed the information in the court records and said that her organization had been involved with the family for at least 20 years and had a "lovely" relationship with the family,
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described as a "very dedicated family."
She said the organization was "devastated."
"We're shocked and very, very sad."
The home where the shootings occurred is a white single-family residence with gray trim. An American flag was on a flagpole in front of the home
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Attached to the house near the roofline was a circular plaque done in a Pennsylvania Dutch style that read "Bless this house" inside a heart-shaped outline.
By late morning, someone had placed four crosses on the front lawn of the home, with the names of the four deceased and their ages marked on them.
Neighbors of the Stack family described them Sunday morning as being friendly neighbors who were well respected throughout the neighborhood.
this is sad
both parents getting older and worried about who would care for the kid they loved and doted on was just to much
Id bet this was a joint decision