STATEMENT
To whom it may concern:Re: Robert E. Parker
Editor's note: The original document indicates 27 items, but there are 28, with the number 5 being used twice for two different items. I have taken the liberty of correcting this error, along with some minor grammatical errors. The print version of this document is a faithful Optical Character Recognition (OCR) of the original scan, but has been converted from ALL CAPS to Sentence Case for ease of reading.
- The last two years Shan was in high school and then
starting to college he had become more and more violent
towards me and Charlene.
- Shan always referred to me as "the dumb, stupid old
man."
- Shan repeatedly told me he did not have to do what I
said, because I was not his Daddy.
- Shan had developed an uncontrollable temper and would
attack me both verbally and physically each time he saw
me.
- Charlene had become afraid of Shan and his friends.
- Shan once became so mad and out of control that he
broke a picture frame containing a picture of me over my
head, because I did not have time to stop and repair his
pickup when he wanted me to.
- Charlene and I had to stop Shan and Jo from having
parties at our cabin. After that Shan changed the locks
on the cabin and gave keys to some of his friends and
told them that the cabin was now his and they could use
it any time they wanted to. One Friday night shortly
after that Charlene and I went to the cabin and found a
couple in the bed having sex. I took their key and made
them leave. The trouble with Shan got a lot worse after
that. He quit his job and stayed at the cabin practically
all the time with his lovers and friends.
- Then Shan broke in my farm house and took my .25 cal
automatic pistol and over $1500 and a set of knucks. I
talked to Sheriff Jimmy Taylor several times asking him
to take the gun away from him, but he would not do
anything. I made several more trips back to see the
sheriff about the serious threats that had been made to
me by Shan and Nathan, but he still would not do
anything.
- Shan had started working at Freeda's store. I went by
and asked him to give me the gun and he could keep the
money. He said, "No I have just what I need to stop you
from coming over and taking Mother out all the time."
- The next day I caught Jo and Nathan out at the
farmhouse I had built for Charlene and me to live in when
she retired. I told them to leave. Nathan said, "I am not
going to be like Shan — just talk. I am going to do
whatever is needed to stop you from coming over and
taking Charlene out all the time." I told him it was none
of his business what me and my wife did.
- The next Friday night I went over to pickup Charlene
to go eat and when I walked in the den I saw her at the
ironing board trying to iron a shirt for Shan. I just
froze in my tracks. I could not believe what I was
looking at. Charlene's blouse was almost torn off her,
her hair was messed up and blood all over her face and
tears were flowing down her face. Then Shan ran in and
grabbed his shirt and knocked Charlene up against the
wall. I screamed at him, and then he ran out got in his
truck and left. Charlene ran over, threw her arms around
me sobbing, saying, "Honey, what are we going to do? We
can't get anyone to help us." I laid her down on the
couch and got a wet towel with some ice. She had bad
bruises all over her body. At about 1030 p.m. we decided
to go eat. I went to my truck and opened the door, but
she went to her car instead. She said she wanted to go
eat with me, but she was afraid to ride with me. I went
over to her car and asked her again what had happened
before I got over here? She said, "I was in the bathroom,
getting ready to go with you, when Shan came in and
jerked me up by my hair and started kicking and beating
me. Then he pulled me by my hair into the den and made me
iron him a shirt, and he said I had better not go out
with you anymore, because he was going to kill you and he
would kill me if I was with you." After we talked she got
in my truck with me and we went off to eat. We rode
around for a while and then came back home. She was
scared to death, but she did not want to go to the law,
because they would not do anything and we would still
have Shan to deal with.
- I stayed away for a few days until I thought Shan had
cooled off. We thought everything was back to normal.
Shan and Kristy had gone to Oxford to register for
college. The next week Charlene and I went out to eat on
Thursday night, June 11, 1992. I told her I would be back
over Sunday night, June 14, 1992, after Rusty picked up
the grand boys. Charlene said she would keep the four of
them at the house and when I got there we would call the
sheriff to come out and talk to them before they left for
school.
- On Sunday night, June 14, 1992, I arrived at the
house about 10:20 p.m. Charlene met me at the carport
door. I asked her if she thought it was too late to call
the sheriff and she said no. We went to Jo's room to
call. I spoke to Shan, Jo, and Kristy as we walked by;
they were sitting around the table in the dining area. Jo
got up and followed us to listen to what we had to say on
the phone. I called the jail first and the dispatcher
told me the sheriff had just left to go home. I then
called his house, talked to his wife, and she told me he
had gone to the store, but would be back shortly. Jo went
back to the table and sat down.
- We went back to the den and started folding clothes.
Charlene was getting Shan's clothes ready for him to
leave for college the next morning. We did not call the
sheriff back, because we thought it was too late. We
continued to fold cloths and talk about selling the
cabin. Nathan came in through the back door, then into
the den and spoke to me and Charlene, and then went back
to the kitchen area to play cards with Shan, Jo, and
Kristy. It was 10:45 p.m. "I remember, because I said to
Charlene that Nathan does not get off until 11:00 p.m.,
then he is early." As soon as Nathan came in, Jo told him
everything we had been talking about.
- I got up to leave, Charlene followed me to the
kitchen door that went in the carport, still talking
about selling the cabin. Charlene had written out the ad
on a piece of bank scratch paper and I had it in my
pocket.
- Shan, Kristy, Jo, and Nathan was all sitting at the
table about 10 feet from us. They were listening to our
conversation. They quit playing cards and just started
listening to us totally. Then Nathan got up from the
table and called Shan and Jo into the den; they talked
for a few minutes, then Nathan went out the den door and
I watched him cross the carport; then I heard a car door
slam out back. He had gone to Jo's car. He came back
across the carport and then in through the den door and
sat at the table, Jo was sitting in his lap, after a
minute Shan went out the den door. I watched through the
window in the door as he went to his truck which was
parked beside mine. He then went to the right side and
got something out of the glove compartment. Then he ran
back and came in through the den door and up behind
Charlene pushing and screaming, "You are not going to
sell my cabin!" Charlene made him go over and sit down. I
said, "Mother I need to go." She said, "No not yet, what
are we going to do about the ad?" I told her I would meet
her after she got off work the next day and we would take
it to the paper and then go by and talk to the sheriff.
- When I said that it set Shan off. He came over,
ordering me to get out and that we were not going to sell
the cabin. Charlene slapped him and told him "... to go
set down like I told you to and yes we are going to sell
it; we have warned you and you won't listen." He went
back and kicked his chair over and stood there staring at
me. Nathan got up and set Jo on the table and set his
chair over against the wall and stepped over beside Shan
and they were staring at me.
- I took my .38 out of my belt and put it in my hand in
my right front pocket and stepped in front of Charlene
where I could watch them, for I knew what was coming,
because Kristy had already opened the back kitchen door.
Charlene had her back to them. I knew that it was my
responsibility to protect Charlene every way I could,
because Shan had already told her he was going to kill me
and he would kill her if she was with me.
- Shan pulled his gun from his right front pocket and
then I made a lunge for him with my gun in my right hand.
I had my arms around him before he got his arm up.
Charlene grabbed me, pulling and screaming stop it. As we
started backwards I heard a gun fire, Kristy went out the
back boor and Nathan went out through the den and Jo came
off the table and fell in the hall way. "This is where Jo
got shot in her elbow and stomach." We went backwards to
where Charlene and I had been standing. I was trying to
keep Charlene behind me at all times to protect her. Shan
and I wound up near the door, face to face, holding each
others arms. I was trying to keep Shan from pointing his
gun at us. Shan fired a shot that went off right in my
face. It was close enough to powder burn my face and burn
places in my glasses. I believe that this is where Shan
shot himself. As we struggled I heard another shot and
Charlene screamed out. I believe this is where she got
shot in the butt. Charlene kept holding on, trying to
help me get the gun away from Shan; she pulled two
buttons off the front of my shirt. We scuffled back
across the kitchen. I kept hearing gun fire even as I was
against the wall next to the den. We went down the wall
into the den between the couch and the buffet cabinet.
Shan had me bent practically back over the couch.
Charlene was on my left, holding onto mine and Shan's
arms, still screaming stop it. I heard another gun fire
and I felt Charlene let go of my arm. I turned my head
and saw her hit the floor.
- With all my strength I came up and shoved Shan back
against the buffet as hard as I could. His wrist struck
the edge of the buffet,knocking the gun out of his hand.
I turned to go down to Charlene and Shan struck me on the
right side of my head knocking me down on Charlene and
causing me to almost pass out. Shan jumped over Jo and
ran down the hall to his room and stood there watching
me. I finally managed to pull Charlene up and started
shaking her, trying to get her to say something. If she
had only stayed behind me and on my right she would never
have gotten shot.
- Then Shan hollered out, "Daddy what is wrong with
Mother?" I said, "I don't know, but go get help." He just
stood there in the doorway looking at me. Jo was laying
in the hall way with her back to me. I kept screaming for
them to get help. Finally, I reached over and got the two
guns off the floor and caught hold of the gun case to
pull myself up and as I stepped over Jo's legs I felt a
sharp pain in my lower right side. I went to my knees and
laid the guns in the floor and started trying to push the
big knot back in my stomach.
- Jo said to me, "Daddy, don't shoot me." I said,
"Sugar I am not going to shoot you, but we have to get
some help." Then I noticed the gun that Shan had and the
clip was about half way out. I checked it and there was a
few shells left in it, so I put the clip back in. Then
Shan shut his door and locked it. He had been standing
just a few feet away, just watching me. I started
screaming for him to come out and help me or go get help.
I managed to slide myself over to his door and I tried to
kick it, but I was not able to. I turned to Jo and asked
her to go get help. She left and went to the Mills' house
across the road.
- I kept begging Shan to unlock the door and come help
me. He kept saying, "I am not coming out." I told him to
move away from the door, because I was going to shoot the
lock off. He said, "Wait a minute," and he went across
the other side of his room and hollered, "OK, go ahead
and shoot the lock off if you want to." I caught hold of
the door knob and pulled myself up and fired my gun
through the door at an upward angle. Then Shan said,
"Wait Daddy, I will open it." He had a small black case
in front of his chest. He said, "Daddy, I have been
shot." He put the case on his bed and showed me. He had
been shot in the right chest and the bullet came out the
top back of his right shoulder. He said he could help me.
- We checked Charlene the best we could, but could find
nothing. Then I went to Jo's room to use the phone to
call for help, but the phone would not work. Shan tried
to get it to work, but could not.
- Then we went back to Charlene. I did everything I
knew to do, but there was no response from her. I told
Shan there was nothing more we can do, for Mother is
dead.
- Shan started shaking and jerking all over. We stood
there looking at Mother. Finally I took him in my arms
and we went in the living room. I just stood there
holding him tight in my arms. Finally, I said, "We need
to get that shoulder seen about, come and go over to the
Mills' and wait for the ambulance. I will go get Freeda
and we will be on in a little while." We walked out to my
truck. I backed out in the road and waited until Beth
Mills let him in the house. I waved at her and went to
get Freeda.
- Ms. Mills testified at my trial that I waited until
she let Shan in her house before I left.
- I only remember firing two shots from my .38 cal. pistol, but I must have fired [3] three, because when I reloaded my .38 at Freeda's house, I remember there was three empties in it.
Robert E. Parker
Date: 12/3/03
Sworn to and subscribed before me this 3rd day of December, 2003.
Christie E. Scott
Notary Public
Hinds County, MS