In a quiet Syosset, New York neighborhood, a family gathering turned into a scene of unimaginable horror. Joanne Kearns, a 69-year-old female from Tampa, Florida, was shot and killed by her brother in a tragic murder-suicide. The incident, which claimed the lives of four family members before the gunman took his own, unfolded amid a dispute over the inheritance of their recently deceased mother's home.
The family had convened at the Wyoming Court residence following the funeral of their
95-year-old mother, Theresa Martha DeLucia, who had passed away just days earlier. Tensions reportedly arose over the decision to sell the house, a prospect that deeply distressed 59-year-old Joseph DeLucia Jr., who had lived in the home his entire life and worked as a mechanic. Believing he was being unfairly cut out of the will and would be left homeless, DeLucia Jr. unleashed a horrific act of violence.
Armed with a 12-gauge shotgun, Joseph DeLucia Jr. shot his sister, Joanne Kearns, along with his brother, Frank DeLucia, 64, of Durham, North Carolina; another sister, Tina Hammond, 64, of East Patchogue, New York; and Tina's 30-year-old daughter, Victoria Hammond. He fired approximately 12 shots at his family members inside the house. Following the killings, DeLucia Jr. went outside to the front lawn and took his own life with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Authorities who arrived at the scene described it as one of the most horrific they had ever witnessed. The investigation concluded that the motive for the killings was Joseph DeLucia Jr.'s distress and anger over the impending sale of the family home. Neighbors reported that DeLucia Jr. had made ominous statements prior to the incident, warning them that if they heard gunshots, it would be too late to call for help. The case was determined to be a murder-suicide, and with the suspect deceased, no arrests were made.
