No Altercation Before Murder/Suicide Of Teachers

"TACOMA PARK, MD — The man who shot and killed a friend before shooting himself in Takoma Park early Sunday morning may have been suffering from severe trauma after serving in the Marines, police say.

"Takoma Park Police investigators are still looking into exactly why David Draa, 30, shot and killed his friend, 30-year-old Steven `Kyle` Hickman, on Sunday, but officials believe that it may be connected to the trauma and other possible difficulties in his personal life.

"Draa shot and killed Hickman in the driveway of a home in the 7300 block of Flower Avenue just before 1:45 a.m. Sunday. Police say Draa shot Hickman from behind, then knelt over his body and turned the gun on himself.

"Police describe Draa and Hickman as good friends and colleagues at the school they worked. Hickman was often a `sounding board` for Draa as he helped him work through some personal issues, according to family members.

"The shooting happened several hours after Hickman and Draa spent the day biking, during which Hickman got a flat tire. He then originally chose to stay over at Draa's apartment, but at some point during the night, he changed his mind and decided to fix the tire and cycle home. Police believe Draa shot Hickman while he was working on the bike and that there was no physical or verbal altercation.

"Detectives believe that one or both of the men drank alcohol that night, but they won't be certain until toxicology reports come back on both men. Those results could take several weeks."

From wrjla.com...