Dr. John Henry Lunetta, age 40, fatally shot his 11-month-old baby boy, John Dylan Lunetta, who was on the verge of celebrating his first birthday on July 12. He also killed his son’s mother, Karen Michelle Jackson, his girlfriend who was 35-years-old. He shot and killed his dog, a golden-doodle. After shooting and killing them, he pointed the gun at his mouth and killed himself. The family was found dead on July 10 by Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department officers.
John Lunetta, M.D., was the medical director for Blood Services, the American Red Cross, Las Vegas, NV.
Denise Bernardo, the family’s neighbor, said Lunetta “must have snapped.” She also called the murders and suicide “deranged.”
Officers went to the family’s home in southwest Las Vegas after receiving a call to do a welfare check. Officers discovered the bodies. The deaths of mother and son were ruled homicides by the Clark County coroner’s office. According to the Las Vegas police, Lunetta shot and killed his infant son and Jackson before “shooting himself.” Jackson also had an 11-year-old daughter. She was not at the home when the shooting deaths happened and are presently being cared for by relatives.
Neighbors never saw any signs of abuse
According to the couple’s neighbors, they had not witnessed any arguments or fighting between Lunetta and Jackson.
They saw no signs of domestic violence. Though some neighbors did see a moving truck outside the deceased couple’s home the weekend prior to the murder-suicide on Monday, they were reportedly not aware of anyone planning to leave.
Randy Sutton, now retired from the Las Vegas Police Department, was a lieutenant who currently provides crime and safety expertise for area media.
He wonders what motivated Lunetta to commit the violent, “abhorrent act.” Since the victims and the suspect are all dead, he said, the goals of the investigation are to “understand how and why.”
Couple’s friends and family react to murder-suicide
Samira Knight, a family law lawyer, has been a friend of Lunetta’s for four years.
She believes that his “unhappy” childhood probably caused him to have Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). She also attributed him as “fixated” on being a good father.
Knight Lunetta met in 2013 at a networking event. She said, he discussed went to her for advice and discussed his “worries” with her, according to Daily Mail (UK). She thinks Lunetta was “pushed over the edge” by Jackson threatening to take away his son.
Jon Sanner, the couple’s friend, said Jackson was dissatisfied with the relationship due to Lunetta’s “excessive drinking.” He stated that she was planning to leave Lunetta, yet, as with the couple’s neighbors, he also saw no signs of physical abuse. He said, Jackson, didn’t state or show fear of Lunetta.
Jackson’s mother, Patricia McMullen, described her daughter as a “wonderful” mother and called her a “go-getter.” When she had dreams for her life, McMullen said, her daughter accomplished those dreams. Jackson, previously in the Air Force, planned to become a family nurse practitioner.
McMullen resides in Florida, saw her daughter, most recently, four years ago. The mother and daughter messaged on Facebook days before Lunetta killed Jackson. Outside the Las Vegas home the couple shared, and where they died with their infant son, is a growing memorial for John Dylan Lunetta who was 11 months, 29 days old when his father shot him to death.
