Editor’s note: All the names in this report are not the real names of those involved. They were changed in deference to the wishes of the families involved.
“Lynn” describes her daughter “Bridget” as your average teenager. In May 2009 she had turned 18 and shortly thereafter graduated from high school. Lynn said her other children and stepchildren were teenagers and young adults and were always bringing friends by her home.
“Kevin” was new to Indiana and when Lynn met him she noticed his odd behavior. Bridget said he was simply a shy person.
“He wouldn’t look me in the eye,” said Lynn.
Kevin and Bridget’s friendship quickly turned into a relationship. Lynn and her family moved from Franklin, Ind., to Indianapolis and during this transition, Bridget began breaking her parents’ rules and constantly arguing with Lynn. She decided that instead of moving with her parents, she and Kevin would get their own apartment.
Lynn was against her daughter moving in with a boy she had only known for a few months but realized that her daughter was strong-willed and that the arrangement wouldn’t last long.
“It was tough love. I realized I needed to accept it, but stay as close to her as possible,” said Lynn.
Initially, the two teens’ living situation was normal. Bridget would call her mother several times a day and Lynn would visit the apartment. She would invite them out to dinner when she suspected they didn’t have food in the home and said that when spendingime with Kevin, she never suspected that he was abusing her daughter.
“She had all older brothers and sisters – she was a tough little girl. Given the type of person she was, if anything came up, I thought she’d be able to handle it. Out of all the kids, I figured she’d be the one to handle a tough situation,” said Lynn.
A few months later, Bridget began to move in and out of the apartment. Lynn made it clear that if she stayed in her home, she would have to abide by her rules. Bridget would agree but eventually defy her parents’ rules and move back in with Kevin.
This continued several times. Lynn still never suspected abuse.
In November, Bridget left Thanksgiving dinner to comfort Kevin because “he was all alone and had no one to spend Thanksgiving with.” Lynn later found out that Kevin was not alone during the holiday and had threatened suicide if Bridget didn’t leave family dinner.
“I don’t know why she was doing this. I guess it was because she was struggling with me, or that she was struggling being an adult. Her father had just gotten out of prison at the time and had a new family. I just didn’t know if he was something she needed – he filled a void,” said Lynn.
On Dec. 9, 2009, Bridget was at Lynn’s home and seemed upset. She was worried about paying for school and Lynn assured her that everything would work out. The next morning when Lynn woke up, Bridget was gone.
Lynn proceeded to go to work and around 10 a.m. she received a text message from Bridget from Kevin’s phone.
“If I could have heard her voice instead of reading the message, I would have known something was wrong,” said Lynn. In the text, Bridget asked her mother if she could come to her job to borrow some money. Lynn inquired about why she needed money. Bridged replied via text, “I picked Kevin up last night, he took my keys, broke my cell phone and wouldn’t let me leave.”
Bridget told her mother that she was attempting to leave a second time. Lynn instructed her to go to her home and she would deal with the situation when she got off work.
“I was furious with her because she left in the middle of the night and she was back over there. I just had this talk with her about getting her life together,” said Lynn.
When Lynn got home, she realized that Bridget never showed up. She tried calling and texting Kevin and threatened to call the police. No response.
She called her oldest son to go over to the apartment to help Bridget move. When he arrived at the apartment, he knocked on the door, but ended up busting into the apartment. When he entered, he found Bridget in the bedroom lying on the bed. Kevin had shot Bridget twice in the head. Kevin also shot himself in the head.
“She had her coat on and her purse and keys. She had one boot on and the other was lying there. We don’t know exactly what happened, but the way the police describe it, she was bending down putting on her other boot. When she sat up, he shot her,” said Lynn who added that based on the crime scene report, the shots were quick and consecutive.
After Bridget’s death, Lynn learned of Kevin’s verbal and emotional abuse against her daughter. A coroner’s report showed that Bridget had never been physically or sexually abused, according to Lynn. Furthermore, Lynn was told of a story where Kevin had thrown hot soup on Bridget and during another instance where he threatened her with a gun.
Lynn suspected Kevin had a gun, but due to the fact that the teens lived in a dangerous apartment complex, she found some comfort knowing they could protect themselves.
When asked what Lynn thought about Kevin committing murder then suicide she said “I hate it for his mother. I hate it for his family. I’m glad my (sons) don’t have to deal with him and I’m glad we don’t have to sit through a trial,” said Lynn. “I’m angry with him, and I hate that he felt so desperate. I don’t feel sorry for him, but I hate that they both had to pay a price.”
Lynn said she regrets continuing on with her day in anger instead of tackling the problem as soon as Bridget contacted her. “I would have protected her. I wish I would have called the police…I wish I would have done something else.”
Lynn and her family are dealing with the death of Bridget the best way they can and have the toughest time on her birthday and during Christmas time.
Next week, readers will learn about the signs of abuse and advice on how to take action if they know someone is being abused.
