First I hear that the Child Protective services took these children away due to domestic violence but were later returned. The problem here is this lady Valerie Jackson's ex, Conley.
HOUSTON (AP) — A Houston woman being held captive by a man she had once been in a relationship with sent a text to her mother saying she was being held at gunpoint and pleading for help before the man fatally shot her, six children and her husband.
"My heart goes out to the mother who received the text from her daughter that she was in trouble, and the mother was many states away but of course did what any mother would do and called 911," Harris District Attorney Devon Anderson said Monday.
Valerie Jackson's mother placed that call to the Harris County Sheriff's Office in Houston. Deputies eventually forced their way into the home where a man with a violent criminal history, David Conley, had held the family captive on Saturday but retreated when Conley fired on them. Hours later, Conley gave himself up, allowing deputies to enter the home and make the gruesome discovery of the bodies. All had been shot in the head and most had been handcuffed.
"Anytime you hear about something that's this heinous, anytime you hear about the death of this many children in a single event, it is hard. It's hard," said Alycia Harvey, the lead prosecutor in the case.
Conley, 48, who has been charged with capital murder, stood handcuffed, shackled and wearing a yellow jumpsuit during his first court appearance on Monday. His court appointed attorney, Joseph Scardino, did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment.
While the sheriff's office has said problems between Conley and Jackson might have led to the shooting, Harvey declined to offer more details on the motive.
Neighbors on Monday said they were aware of the family's troubled history of domestic violence, with prior police visits and contact with Child Protective Services.
Along with Jackson, 40, those killed were identified as her husband Dewayne Jackson, 50; and their children Dewayne, 10; Honesty, 11; Caleb, 9; Trinity, 7; and Jonah, 6. Also killed was 13-year-old, Nathaniel, who was believed to be Conley's son from the relationship with Valerie Jackson.
