On October 2, 2024, in Dorris, California, 55-year-old Mary Loretta Curtz was found deceased in her yard from a fatal gunshot wound. Deputies from the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office (SCSO) responded to the scene after receiving reports of a shooting.
While deputies were securing the area, 24-year-old Andre Bryant Layne, Curtz's son, contacted SCSO dispatchers. He confessed to accidentally shooting his mother with a stolen rifle. Dispatchers maintained communication with Layne, persuading him to exit a nearby residence safely and unarmed. Upon his emergence, a California Highway Patrol officer detained him without incident.
Layne was subsequently arrested and booked into the Siskiyou County Jail. He faces charges including suspicion of murder, burglary, and grand theft of a firearm, with bail set at $250,000 for the murder charge. The investigation remains ongoing, and authorities have urged anyone with additional information to contact the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office at (530) 841-2900.
