Douglas Turrell, Odessa, Florida man, shoots his mother, Joanne Turrell dead while celebrating her 78th birthday at the family home. No known motive.
A Florida man is accused of shooting and killing his 78-year-old mother as she was celebrating her birthday at their Odessa, family home, a sheriff’s office said.
On Feb. 20, a woman called her mother’s neighbor to see if they could check on her mom, Joanne Turrell, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, WTVT reported.
The neighbor went inside Turrell’s house and found her dead, the sheriff’s office said.
‘Happy birthday mom!’
Deputies arrived at the house shortly after, around 7 p.m., and saw Turrell had been shot and then covered with a blanket, according to a Feb. 21 news release.
When deputies searched the home, they found a bedroom door locked, the sheriff’s office said.
Inside was the deceased woman’s son, Douglas Turrell, 53, who lived with her in Odessa, deputies said.
Motive not released
Douglas Turrell was found with a firearm ‘near him’ and taken into custody, according to the sheriff’s office.
He is charged with second-degree murder, according to the sheriff’s office, but a possible motive was not released.
‘Our heart breaks for the friends and family of this woman whose life was not only tragically ended but done so at the hands of her son,’ Sheriff Chad Chronister said in the release. ‘Joanne Turrell was celebrating her 78th birthday. A time that should have been filled with joy and beautiful memories. Instead, we are now trying to piece together what resulted in it ending in such heartbreak.’
The 78 year old was known amongst locals as a ‘wonderful person,’ with neighbours now trying to make sense of the gun violence that has shocked the community, abcactionnews reported.
The sheriff’s office said the investigation was ongoing.
Odessa is about 25 miles north of Tampa.
