Man, 2 Children Dead in DV Murder-Suicide

Media outlets around the state are slowly releasing details about a Southwest Georgia man suspected of killing his 15-year-old and 8-year-old stepchildren, then himself.

From Fox 31 in Southwest Georgia:

Colquitt County Sheriff's officials say it started as a domestic violence situation between Kejie McDougald and his wife Angela. But it ended with the death of the husband and their two children.

“She got away from him, escaped from the house ran to a neighbor. In [sic] the husband took the lives of two children and himself,” said Colquitt County Sheriff Al Whittington.

Investigators say the kids, both boys ages 15 and 8, were just getting ready for bed when the violence broke out.

It's also an especially tough case for the sheriff's department, because Angela McDougald is one of their own.

“She is a deputy sheriff with Colquitt County. She has been with us since I think '02, just a fine young lady,” said Whittington.

This crime affects a large part of Colquitt Count, because not only did Mrs. McDougald work for the sheriff's office, but she was assigned at the Colquitt county school system, where her husband also worked and both of their children attended classes.

People are always shocked when someone they know commits an act this violent, but we would remind everyone that batterers don't walk around with a neon sign on their chest that says "beware". They look like everyone else, and just because they are nice to their neighbors or good at their job does not mean that they aren't capable of violence within the home.

Another truth is that survivors of domestic violence don't wear signs on their chest identifying themselves as such. Many of us have a stereotype of a domestic violence victim in our head. She is usually covered in bruises, cowering in a corner, has no self esteem, and is in need of rescue. Occasionally WRC meets women like that, who have been so beaten down by years of abuse that they have lost their sense of self, but more often the women, just like the men, look like everyone else.

This is certainly a teaching moment for an entire county about what domestic violence can look like. We should also remember that this is not just a teaching moment, but the loss of three lives to a problem that our society largely ignores. Our thoughts and prayers are with the McDougald family.