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Missouri Woman Who Was 'Acting Irrationally' Killed Her Son, 5, Before Turning Gun on Herself

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A Missouri mother fatally shot her 5-year-old son before turning the gun on herself in an apparent murder-suicide.

On Wednesday morning, St. Louis police responded to a call made by a family member who lived in the home with the mother, later identified as Krisha Lockwood, and child. There were reports of "shots being fired" inside the house, Lt. Scott Aubuchon told the St. Louis Post Dispatch.

Upon arrival, officers spoke with Lockwood, 25, inside the home. They described her as “acting irrationally" and decided to retreat after growing worried “she had a weapon on her," Aubuchon said.

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Authorities began to secure the scene and requested assistance. That's when they heard a gunshot from inside the home, Fox4 reports. When officers went back inside the home, they found Lockwood dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Her son, 5-year-old Kevin Barrett III, was also found dead, but it remains unclear whether he was killed before or after police arrived on the scene, according to the Post Dispatch.

"I walk past this every single day, I never seen anything or heard anything; it's shocking," neighbor Dan Bequette told KSDK. "You would have to think that the person would have reached a point of hopelessness."