A man killed eight relatives, including four children, as they gathered for a weekly Sunday dinner at a family home in Billings, Montana, then set the house on fire before dying of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, officials and family members said.
Police said they responded to the home Sunday evening and heard gunfire coming from behind the house just before it became fully engulfed in flames. In a statement Tuesday, the Billings Police Department said investigators believe eight people, four juveniles and four adults, died in the attack, with the shooter’s death bringing the total number who died at the scene to nine. Recovery of the victims’ remains was still underway as of Tuesday, and the department said the scene would likely remain active for several more days.
Family members have asked that attention stay focused on the victims rather than the person responsible. “They want as little focus on him as possible,” family friend Jennifer Mercer said. “They just want the kids and the family to be remembered, not this person.” In keeping with that request, this report includes only the information necessary to understand what happened.
What We Know So Far
The victims spanned four generations of a blended family, according to Mercer, who spoke with permission from relatives Erica Jarussi Schneider and Adam Ghekiere. They included Megan Ghekiere and her two children from a previous marriage, Owen Ireland, 13, and Chloe Ireland, 7; Megan’s two stepchildren, Landon Ghekiere, 15, and Charlotte Ghekiere, 12; her parents, Dana Smith, 72, and Barb Smith, 69, who owned the home; and her grandmother, Evelyn Smith, 92, who used a wheelchair.
Brad Ireland, Megan’s former husband and father of Owen and Chloe, told the Associated Press that the man responsible had been living with his parents in Montana for years before they asked him to move out several weeks earlier. He returned unannounced Sunday evening, during the family’s regular weekly dinner. Adam Ghekiere, Megan’s husband, was at work and not at the home when the shooting occurred.
Charlotte, 12, called 911 during the attack. “The one thing we do know is that Charlotte was the hero,” Mercer said. “Charlotte called 911 and she tried to save her family.” Police arrived roughly 11 minutes after the first report of gunfire, made at 6:01 p.m.
Firefighters battled the blaze until around 1 a.m., according to Billings Fire Chief Matt Hoppel. The home sat in a subdivision outside municipal limits that was not required to have fire hydrants, and crews delayed entry until the scene was secured, allowing the fire to burn through much of the structure. Billings police spokesperson Jeff Stovall said the resulting damage to the home’s structural integrity has complicated the investigation and recovery effort.
Remembering the Victims
Mercer, who lived across the street from Landon and Charlotte, described the family as loving and close, saying the children got along well and that their parents remained amicable after Megan and Brad Ireland’s divorce six years earlier. She said Landon was a caring teenager who was always willing to help family and neighbors, and had been planning to get his driver’s license this week ahead of his sophomore year at Billings Senior High. Charlotte, about to start seventh grade, was funny and curious, with a particular love of searching for bugs outdoors, Mercer said. She said Charlotte’s parents recalled her living by her favorite phrase: “I love you more.”
The Smith family had relocated to Montana from the Seattle area. Megan moved to Billings with her children after her divorce and later remarried; her parents and grandmother followed and settled nearby.
Community Response
Mercer started an online fundraiser to help cover funeral costs and other expenses for the surviving family, writing that the community lost two of its brightest lights in Landon and Charlotte, along with six other family members, in what she called a senseless act of violence. A second fundraiser was organized by Michael Solberg to support Adam Ghekiere, an airport rescue firefighter, describing the scale of his loss as almost unimaginable. Together the two fundraisers had raised nearly $120,000 by Tuesday afternoon.
Mercer said the community’s response had been overwhelming and that the family remains grateful despite the scope of their loss, adding that they hope to eventually be remembered for the fullness of their lives rather than the circumstances of their deaths. A community candlelight vigil is being planned.
Why This Matters
Officials said the Billings shooting is the 22nd mass killing recorded in the United States this year, according to a database maintained by the Associated Press, USA Today and Northeastern University. Criminologist James Alan Fox, who manages the database, said 15 of this year’s mass killings have stemmed from domestic disputes, a higher share than the roughly 50 percent average typically seen in U.S. mass killings.
It is the deadliest mass killing in the country since April, when a Louisiana father fatally shot eight children, including seven of his own, and wounded his wife and another woman. Brad Ireland said there had been warning signs in the years before Sunday’s attack that went unheeded, though he said he was unaware of any history of violence, describing periods of verbal hostility instead. Records checks in Montana and Washington found no prior arrests or criminal charges against the man responsible, and Ireland said he had struggled to hold steady employment after college.
What Happens Next
Billings police said they plan to share additional details of the investigation at a press conference Wednesday afternoon. Recovery efforts at the scene are expected to continue for several more days given the condition of the burned structure.
The two community fundraisers remain active to support the surviving family members, including Landon and Charlotte’s mother and Adam Ghekiere, as they face funeral costs and time away from work in the aftermath of the attack.
Reporting drawn from the Associated Press and the Billings Gazette
