Update: April 11, 2017
Family members are now raising funds on GoFundMe for Jonathan Martinez’s family.
Earlier:
Cedric Anderson, 53, of Riverside, Calif., arrived at the North Park Elementary School in San Bernardino, Calif., on Monday morning, where his estranged wife, Karen Elaine Smith, 53, worked as a special education teacher. According to San Bernardino Police Chief Jarrod Burguan, Anderson was allowed access to the school because he said he was dropping off something to his wife, but once inside the classroom, he opened fire with a .357 Magnum.
“Without saying anything, armed with a large-caliber revolver, he opened fire on his wife,” Burguan said in an interview with the San Bernardino Sun. “She was killed in the exchange.”
Along with Smith, authorities say, 8-year-old Jonathan Martinez was struck by the gunfire and died on his way to the hospital. As of Monday evening, a 9-year-old was in stable but critical condition.
Anderson and Smith had been married only since January but were already separated for a couple of weeks before Monday’s incident. After killing his wife, Anderson killed himself with the same gun.
North Park Elementary will be closed Tuesday and Wednesday, and the school district plans on providing grief counseling for the children and administration.
“Parents, I have a message for you. I would like you to work with your young child to keep things as normal as possible,” said Dale Marsden, superintendent for the San Bernardino City Unified School District. “Be willing to listen to their story as many times as possible. And be ready to model for them a healthy response.”
Earlier in February, Anderson posted a video on Facebook about his marriage to Smith.
“What I love about my wife, boy, she is making me really happy,” Anderson said in the video. “She knows when to ignore me. That makes a happy marriage.”
Read more at the San Bernardino Sun.
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