The mother of the 15-year-old North Carolina mass shooter was reportedly the first to arrive on the scene after her son allegedly shot dead his older brother, according to neighbors. Austin Thompson’s mother Elise arrived at her family’s home on Thursday in a panic, only to find her 16-year-old son James shot to death in a bathroom, according to the Daily Mail.
According to photos acquired by DailyMail.com, Elise Thompson, 52, parked her blue Honda CRV on the street opposite her front door after she arrived at the scene in a panic. Austin Thompson blasted his victims, first killing his brother before going on a killing spree that claimed five lives and critically injured two others.
Concerned and Heartbroken Mother
Photos obtained by DailyMail.com show Elise Thompson’s blue Honda CRV still parked where she left it on the street opposite her front door. She then entered the family home to find James, 16, shot dead in the bathroom.
She reportedly rushed into the house without even turning into her driveway, according to the neighbors.
Police were yet to arrive on the scene, a two-mile area that was swiftly cordoned off as the nightmare unfolded.
Austin is accused of shooting his victims with a shotgun, killing four people later that day, one of whom was an off-duty police officer, and injuring two more.
According to witnesses, the shooter was equipped with a backpack, black boots, and was wearing camouflage clothing. He later barricaded himself in a barn nearby, where he was later traced by police with a head wound from a gunshot.
The juvenile, who is in serious condition at a hospital following the incident, will be prosecuted as an adult “if he recovers”, Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman told Fox News on Friday.
Sudden Change
The teenager was quiet, according to his neighbors, but they noticed him since he was wandering through the area around 4:30 in the morning while carrying his book bag, even though his school didn’t start for another couple of hours.
At 7 pm on Saturday evening, about 100 residents of the tiny town of Hedingham gathered for a candlelit vigil. Only ten minutes had passed since Austin Thompson started his shooting spree when they stood in the settling dusk on the grass in front of Beacon Baptist Church.
The prayers were led by Pastor Tim Rabon, who was aware that among the assembled people were family members, neighbors, and friends of those who had died or had been hurt, – as well as those who knew the shooter himself – stood before him in the crowd.
“All of us have been affected in some way,” he said. “By these tragic acts, these violent acts and we are all probably asking questions that start with one of two words, ‘How?’ or ‘Why?’
“We are gathered here to seek answers, not the sort of answers given by politicians or offered by the news media [but those provided by] a God that wants to help us.”
In an interview with DailyMail.com before the brief vigil, Pastor Rabon revealed that while the Thompson family did not belong to his church, one of his parishioners lived just three doors away from Officer Torres, who was fatally shot as he was leaving for his shift.
“She got into her home and had closed the door just two minutes before she heard the shooting,” he said.
The parishioner, who he declined to identify, saw the “baby-faced” attacker as Thompson ran past her house and killed two more people. The pastor claims that she is still dealing with the trauma of what she saw.
He continued by saying that she is still having trouble comprehending precisely how near her door the “evil that infiltrated the town on Thursday afternoon” actually was.
Police received a flurry of 911 calls starting at 5.13pm on Thursday from panicked residents of the Hedlingham area reporting an active shooter in the quiet north Raleigh neighborhood.
Neighbor Nicole Connors, 52, Susan Karnatz, 49, Mary Marshall, 35, and off-duty police officer Gabriel Torres, 29, have been identified as Thompson’s additional victims. Both Marcille Gardner, 59, and Casey Joseph Clark, 33, suffered injuries. Clark is now back home after receiving treatment at a hospital. Gardner’s condition is still critical.
