Manhunt underway after suspect slaughters mom, friend & posts gruesome details on Facebook: Police

Authorities are currently searching for a Tennessee man who reportedly admitted on Facebook to shooting and killing his friend and mother inside an East Ridge home on Sunday.

USA Today reports that police are looking for 22-year-old Casey James Lawhorn in connection with the deaths of his mother, Vi Lawhorn, and a friend, Avery Gaines, inside a residence on Sunday at close to 1 a.m.

In a now-deleted Facebook post, Lawhorn reportedly wrote that he used a “stolen .22 LR rifle calibre” to shoot both victims. He then reportedly stole heroin and cash from Gaines while sparing the lives of the pet cat and dog in the home.

“I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about murder, wondering what it feels like, but I’ve barely felt anything,” Lawhorn wrote in the Facebook post. “I didn’t hurt our dog or cat, in case anyone was wondering about the animals.”

Posted by Vi Perdue Lawhorn on Friday, June 30, 2017

 

Lawhorn also allegedly described the incident in graphic detail, writing that he tried to shoot his mother in her bedroom but his gun jammed. His mother, possibly intoxicated, initially didn’t seem to notice Lawhorn as he walked to another room to clear the gun jam. When he returned he shot her, then turned the gun on Gaines, who was sleeping on the floor, and shot him as well, according to police. Both victims were found inside the home deceased.

“My mom was completely wasted, and just like every other time she gets drunk, she goes on and on, without prompt, about how devastated she’d be if I killed myself. Once I got her back to our house I went to my room and grabbed the gun. My mom was in her room, disoriented from alcohol, barely registered that anything happened. I attempted to shoot her in her bed right then, but the gun jammed. She didn’t notice what I just attempted. I left the room and fixed the jam.

I nervously paced for a few minutes, playing the coming events out in my head, which were vastly different from what actually happened. I walked up to Avery as he slept and shot him in the head once, he seemed to die instantly. 

When I went back into her room, she was out of bed trying to calm down her dog, Oscar. I rapidly got off 2 shots, but I missed anything vital since there weren’t any lights on in her room. I saw 1 entry wound in her left arm, I’m not sure where the other one went. 

She started screaming the worst scream I’ve ever heard. Movies really don’t do justice to how true terror sounds. The gun jammed up again, so I scrambled to get it fixed. 

She shouted ‘You shot me! You’ve killed me! Why?’ Once I got the jam fixed, I turned on the light so I wouldn’t miss again. I shot at her twice more and it was over. 

I went back into the living room to take the heroin and cash Avery had on him. The whole in his forehead was so small, and not a lot of blood had come out of it. 

However, thick, dark blood was pouring from his nose and bile came out of his mouth. I was shaking from adrenaline, but I felt nothing other than that, except maybe disgust at the corpse in front of me and the noises it was making. I reached into his pocket to get out his wallet, grabbed what i wanted, and left the house. The whole event took probably 3 or 4 minutes. 

I had hoped both were going to be quick and efficient. I didn’t want my mom to suffer, to die in horror, to die with the knowledge that her son did it (I didn’t hurt our dog or cat, in case anyone was wondering about the animals).”

Shortly after the attacks, Lawhorn apparently called 911 and confessed. He then explained that he planned to travel north, where he would find a secluded area to take his own life.

“The suspect called us and identified himself and talked to our dispatchers for some time,” East Ridge Police Assistant Police Chief Stan Allen said to ABC News. “He told them that he had committed the crime and that he was going to a location north of our city to find a secluded spot to kill himself.”

Casey James Lawhorn's vehicle has been found on I59 near the Vossburg exit in Jasper County. Lawhorn is wanted in…

Posted by Jasper County Sheriff's Department, Mississippi on Sunday, April 8, 2018

 

According to the Jasper County Sheriff’s Department in Jasper, Mississippi, authorities found the suspect’s vehicle on Interstate 59, close to the Vossburg exit in Jasper County on Sunday. Although Lawhorn wasn’t inside the vehicle, police think he’s still in Jasper County.

Lawson is considered armed and dangerous. Anyone who spots him should not approach, but instead call 911.

The story is still developing. Check back with CrimeOnline as additional details become available.

[Feature Photo: Casey Lawhorn/Facebook]