Once again, we have the fatal shooting of a child at the hands of his violent father. A crime that might have been preventable IF the authorities--for once--had listened to the mother and responded to her concerns in a serious and prompt fashion. The mother tried to obtain an order of protection against her husband CLINTON GALLAGHER that gave her temporary custody of their 6-year-old son. She told them about his gun and how he was in a "rage."
But Gallagher played a classic move--right out of the fathers rights handbook. It's called "muddy the waters" by filing your own order of protection against the protective mother. The authorities are so afraid of looking "sexist" or "biased" these days that they just go into a state of paralysis. Never mind the fact that it's MUCH less common for violence committed by women to be of a nature where a protective order is required. So now a little boy is dead and a mother is heartbroken.
http://www.kctv5.com/news/26146023/detail.html
Court Documents Paint Picture In Lone Jack Killings
POSTED: 3:44 pm CST December 15, 2010
UPDATED: 5:55 pm CST December 15, 2010
LONE JACK, Mo. -- Court documents filed late last week paint a picture of a mother who was scared for her child's safety.
Lone Jack police said that Clinton Gallagher and his 6-year-old son, Alex, were found dead inside a house in the 300 block of Pecan Tree Avenue, just days after orders of protection were filed by both Gallagher and his wife. Officers said both were killed by apparent gunshot wounds and that the incident may have been a murder-suicide.
Counselors were on hand Wednesday at Lone Jack Elementary School, where Alex was a kindergartner and the school flag was at half-staff.
"He will truly be missed by everyone," said Brandy Gaylord, who runs the child care in Lee's Summit that Alex attended the past four years. "He was a joy to have. His smile would light up a room. His laughter would draw you close to that room."
On Friday, both Gallagher and his wife filed orders of protection against one another. In hers, she told the court she was concerned about a gun that Gallagher owned and requested temporary custody of their child. She wrote, "I'm afraid he will use it on me at this time being that he is in a rage."
Gaylord said the memories of Alex will help ease the loss.
"He was part of the family," she said. "You get close when you provide care 10 hours a day."
Gaylord said she plans to close the child care center the day of the funeral. A date has not been set for the funeral.
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December 15, 2010: Child Dead: Murder-Suicide Suspected