Alabama teen allegedly massacred his entire family after learning that his mother was not his biological parent
ELKMONT, ALABAMA: A 14-year-old boy who previously confessed to shooting and killing five of his family members is said to have done so because he found out that he was not his mother's biological son. The teenager, whose identity has not been revealed because of his juvenile status, called the Limestone County Sheriff's Department at around 1:15 am on Monday, September 2, to report a shooting in his Elkmont home.
A press release from the LCSO stated that when deputies arrived at the scene, he told them that he had been in the basement of the house when he heard shots ring out upstairs. He said he ran outside after going upstairs to check and hearing footsteps. When they went inside to investigate, deputies found the bodies of five people on the main floor. Three were already dead, and two others were airlifted to local hospitals in critical condition. Neither survived their injuries. The victims were later identified as the juvenile's father, John Sisk, 38, his stepmother, Mary Sisk, 35, his two half-brothers, aged six and six-months-old, and his half-sister, 5.
Due to discrepancies in his statement, Sheriff Mike Blakeley and an investigator took the 14-year-old to the LCSO and interviewed him, and the teen confessed to shooting and killing all five family members. He then helped investigators in locating the murder weapon, a 9mm pistol, on the side of the road near the residence. The gun was recovered early the next day and was found to have been in the home illegally. While police have not yet released a motive for the killings, Daisy McCarty, a cousin of the teen, said that the rampage had occurred just days after he found out that he was not his mother's biological son.
His biological mother died in 2011, though he had not seen her since 2008, when he was just three-years-old, according to court records obtained by AL. "He didn't know any different of who his mom was," she revealed. "And they just recently told him, and I think that's really what triggered the little boy, to be honest with you." She also said that he had been acting out for months before the gruesome shootings, including burning living animals and breaking into his school.
The teen, who has not yet been adjudicated, is currently being held in a juvenile detention facility and is facing five juvenile counts of murder. The sheriff's office has announced that these could be updated to adult charges of capital murder pending adjudication - in Alabama, youths as young as 14 can be charged as adults if the prosecution seeks for it and a judge approves.
"Unfortunately, we are facing a tragedy on a scale we aren't used to in Limestone County, Alabama," said the LCSO. "It's important that you understand this is a community that has a lot of healing to do, and we are unified here to assist in that process. This will have a ripple effect among the family, community, and county. It affects us all."