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Father That Shot Young Son Then Himself Struggled With Depression
By: Associated Press
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UPDATE: 1/11/13 @ 8:55 a.m. The Guernsey County sheriff said a man who killed his 5-year-old son before turning the gun on himself struggled with depression and had been out of work for some time.
Sheriff Michael McCauley said Russell Ball, 36, had threatened to kill himself in a text message exchange Tuesday night with his estranged wife, but she didn't take him seriously because he never attempted it before.
McCauley said Ball killed his young son with a shotgun before shooting himself sometime after that. Their bodies were found at Ball's home near Cambridge Wednesday afternoon.
McCauley said Russell Ball and his wife had separated the day after Christmas.
Authorities said an eastern Ohio man fatally shot his 5-year-old son, before turning the gun on himself in an apparent murder-suicide.
Guernsey County sheriff's deputies went to a home just outside Cambridge Wednesday afternoon to check on 36-year-old Russell Ball. They say he had threatened to hurt himself.
Deputies forced their way into the home and found Ball and his 5-year-old son dead. It's believed Ball shot and killed his son and then shot himself with the same weapon.
The sheriff's office continues to investigate and is expected to release more information Thursday.