Consanguinity Links Killer, Victims

"SPRING, TX — The weight of the scene was too much for relatives to handle as they stood in front of a Spring home Sunday where a 23-year-old stabbed two young brothers to death before killing himself.

"As night fell on the site of the murder-suicide, family members held each other, shaking with emotion. `Why did this happen?,` one young relative asked.

"`We don't know the answer for that yet. We don't know why,` said Sgt. Felipe Rivera with the Harris County Sheriff Office's homicide department.

"No one witnessed the attack, and authorities were receiving conflicting reports late Sunday, but relatives confirmed that Hunter Archer, 10, was killed inside the house on 6222 Darby Way around 5:40 p.m. His brother, Jhaden Archer, 8, was transported to Memorial Hermann Hospital. Television station KHOU reported that he died overnight at the hospital.

"After stabbing the boys with an unknown object, the 23-year-old suspect—a cousin who has been staying with the family—shot himself in the head. He died at the scene.

"Neither alcohol nor a history of mental illness appeared to play a role, Rivera said.

"Mother Gina Archer was treated at Memorial Hermann after collapsing because of the incident. She and her husband Christian Shaine Archer, originally from the Los Angeles area, have been married more than 20 years and have three sons and a teenage daughter, who just announced her engagement and pregnancy, according to their Facebook pages.

"Neighbors said the family was devoted and tight-knit.

"The case remains under investigation."

From chron.com...