‘As a community, we are just crushed;’ Southern Ohio township mourns loss of 4 in murder-suicide

CLERMONT COUNTY — Authorities said they have officially determined who was responsible for the death of four family members at a home in southeast Ohio.

A mother, 46-year-old Theresa Cain, shot and killed three family members — 50-year-old Steven Cain, 74-year-old William Felton and 13-year-old Ethan Cain— then herself at the family’s Ohio Township home, according to the Clermont County Sheriff’s Office our news partners at WCPO report.

Theresa’s daughter Samantha Cain was also shot but survived. She remains in critical condition at an area hospital, according to WCPO.

The sheriff’s office said they analyzed information from physical evidence, autopsy reports and the position of the family’s bodies at the crime scene to determine this.

Law enforcement was called to the Cain’s home Monday morning for a “civil service call.” Neighbors said the family living at the home was being evicted.

While deputies were approaching the home they heard multiple gunshots come from inside.

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When a special response team entered the home they found five people shot, and four were pronounced dead.

Friends and neighbors spoke to WCPO about the loss of four members of the community and what led up to the shooting.

Traci Bosse lived next to the Cains for more than seven years. She said the deputies came to their door and spoke to them about what had happened.

Bosse said she remembers meeting Steve and Theresa when they moved into the home in the summer of 2015. She originally noticed Steve’s Steelers t-shirt.

“I went down and ... he had on a Pittsburgh Steelers t-shirt, and we are die-hard Bengals fans, like, ‘Hey, not too sure how this is going to go. We’re Bengals fans you got that Steelers shirt,’” Bosse said.

Bosse said Steve told her the family moved from Connecticut so he could work at P&G — where she worked. She quickly got over the Steelers shirt and the two families bonded, watching over one another, their homes, spending summers together in the pool and watching their kids grow up.

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“I was shocked that the eviction was going to happen on Monday,” Bosse said. “Another neighbor called, and I said, ‘Hey I just told the neighbor across the street to let them know that I can take care of Sam and E (Ethan), I’ll come home,’ and he said, ‘You don’t need to come home.’”

New Richmond Superintendent Tracey Miller said in a letter to parents that 13-year-old Ethan was a New Richmond Middle School student.

“(He) was loved by students and staff alike and his loss leaves a tremendous hole in the heart of our district and our community,” Miller said.

Miller said a crisis response team was at the school Tuesday and both students and staff spent the day grieving.

“As a community, we are just crushed,” he said.

On Tuesday, students left notes on a bulletin board to mourn Ethan’s loss, sharing words of kindness and sorrow.

The district is also rallying behind Samantha, who is still fighting for her life in the hospital. Miller said she was on the academic team at New Richmond and is now a student at Northern Kentucky University.

“The entire New Richmond community is behind her in this fight,” Miller said.

A GoFundMe has been set up to help pay for Samantha’s medical expenses as she remains hospitalized.

Clermont County officials said there does not appear to be any threat to the community at this time and there is no search for outstanding suspects. The investigation is ongoing.

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