Former Tampa Man Kills Daughter, 6 Grandchildren, Cops Say

The tiny North Florida town of Bell was rocked Thursday afternoon when a 51-year-old man killed his daughter and six grandchildren before turning a gun on himself.

The Gilchrist County Sheriff’s Office received a call about the shooting in the town of roughly 450 people Thursday afternoon, the agency said in a media release. Don Charles Spirit, 51, placed that call, USA Today is reporting. Bell told dispatchers he wanted to harm himself.

When law enforcement arrived on the scene, Spirit shot himself, First Coast News reported. Once inside the home, deputies discovered the bodies of Spirit’s daughter, Sarah, and his six grandchildren, ages 3 months to about 10.

It is unclear at this time why Spirit committed the murder-suicide.

Don Spirit was sentenced to three years in prison for a felony firearms violation back in 2003 in relation to a 2001 hunting accident that led to the death of his son Kyle, 8, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

The family lived in Tampa at the time, but moved to Bell following Kyle’s death, the paper stated.

Spirit had been convicted in 1998 for felony possession of marijuana, making it illegal for him to own a firearm. Spirit was released from state custody on Feb. 19, 2006, according to Florida Department of Corrections records.

“We are asking for prayers for this community and the families involved,” the Gilchrist County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page said following the shootings. “We ask for patience from the media and public as we work through this investigation.”

Spirit is the second Florida grandparent in recent months to kill a grandchild. Martha White of Tallahassee was charged in August in the stabbing death of her 7-year-old grandson.

See Also:

• Boy Stabbed by Grandmother Begged for Life

Photo Credit: Don Spirit/Florida Department of Corrections