Sister Dead, Brother Hospitalized After Argument Escalates

"IMPERIAL, MO — A 55-year-old woman was shot and killed by her brother in an argument Sunday afternoon, and the brother then shot himself in his head, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office. The brother, 47, was air-lifted to an area hospital for treatment.

"The Sheriff's Office was not releasing either name.

"Sheriff Oliver `Glenn` Boyer said in a news release that a police investigation indicated that the son `retrieved a firearm, shot his sister and then shot himself.`

"Sheriff's deputies were called out about 3:10 p.m. to a disturbance in the 5400 block of Old Lemay Ferry Rd.

"The woman had called the dispatch center and said that her brother was out of control, according the Sheriff's Department. At that point, the dispatcher lost phone contact. About one minute later the dispatch center received a second call from the same address from another woman—identified as their mother—who said that her son was on the floor bleeding from his head. The mother said that her daughter was also bleeding and that she was outside in the driveway.

"Once they arrived, the deputies found the sister dead in the driveway of the home. Deputies found her brother with a gunshot wound on the porch of the home. The brother lives at the home.

"Their mother, 81, told authorities that her son and daughter had gotten into a verbal argument, which escalated.

"The investigation is continuing."

From the Post-Dispatch...