Double Murder Suicide Leaves 2 Children Orphaned
GRAND PRAIRIE (CBSDFW.COM) — A series of phone calls led up to a double murder suicide that left two children orphaned.
Dashun Atkins, 39, drove to Hill Top Lane to the home of his ex-wife, Janea James, 37, and shot her in her neighbor's yard, according to Grand Prairie Police Det. Mark Beseda. Atkins shot James' boyfriend, James Doyle, 41, inside the home.
Two children, a 5-year-old boy and 3-year-old girl, who belonged to Atkins and James were left at the home unharmed.
Atkins then drove to his apartment's garage and shot himself.
Grand Prairie police said James' had called their non-emergency line twice on Saturday to report Atkins had been harassing her via phone and calls and texts and was driving by her home. Both times James declined to press criminal charges.
After the second call, police made contact with Atkins.
"The officer spoke to him for a short time and asked him to, you know, basically cut it out and stop harassing her," Det. Beseda said.
Grand Prairie police then received a call from one of Atkins relatives in Louisiana, who was concerned about Atkins' welfare.
"He called them saying that he'd been in an argument with his ex-wife. They'd been fighting back and forth, that they were concerned for his safety," Det. Beseda said.
Officers made contact with Atkins a second time, this time in person, at an apartment in Grand Prairie.
"Officers spoke with him. He stated he was perfectly fine. He had no reason to harm her or himself," Det. Beseda said. "At that time, we had no legal authority to arrest him for any reason whatsoever."
It was after that conversation with police that the unthinkable happened. Police received several phone calls about shots fired. When they arrived they found the bodies of James and Doyle.
Grand Prairie police said even if James' had filed harassment charges against Atkins, which is a misdemeanor, officers would not have been able to arrest him unless he was present at the time.
Police said the couples young children were taken into protective custody to be questioned before they could be turned over to family members.
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