Eight children killed at home in Louisiana domestic violence, US police say

WASHINGTON - A gunman killed seven of his children and an eighth minor in a domestic violence incident on April 19 at a house in Shreveport, Louisiana, before police fatally shot him during a vehicle chase, the authorities said.

Seven bodies were found inside the house where the shooting occurred, while the eighth youth died attempting a rooftop escape, Shreveport Police Department spokesperson Christopher Bordelon told local TV station KTBS.

One crime scene was “incredibly gruesome”, Mr Bordelon told KTBS.

Preliminary information indicated the suspect first shot a woman and then went to a nearby home where he killed the children, according to a Facebook post from the Shreveport police.

The children’s ages ranged from about one to 14, police said.

Two women were being treated at a hospital for serious injuries, the post said.

The suspect and one woman who was shot were the parents of seven of the children, Mr Bordelon told TV station KSLA.

One woman sustained life-threatening injuries, and multiple families were affected, he told KSLA.

The incident occurred after 6am on April 19, he told reporters.

Police identified the suspect as Shamar Elkins, according to Ms Leigh Anne Evensky, director of communications for the Shreveport mayor’s office.

The suspect carjacked a vehicle after the shootings and was killed when police fired at the vehicle during a chase that went into neighbouring Bossier Parish, Mr Bordelon said.

Louisiana State Police are investigating the officer-involved shooting of the man, spokesperson Kate Stegall said.

“This is a tragic situation, maybe the worst tragic situation we’ve ever had,” Shreveport mayor Tom Arceneaux said.

A comprehensive domestic violence center is being established by the Caddo Parish sheriff, which the mayor’s office is working to support, Mr Arceneaux later told Reuters.

Shooter’s motive unclear

At a news conference, Louisiana state Senator Sam Jenkins, whose district includes much of Shreveport, said the shooting underscores the need for more resources to combat domestic violence.

“If we have someone with a history of domestic violence, let’s make sure that those resources, that intervention is there on a continuous and consistent basis, hopefully to avoid what we’ve seen here today,” Mr Jenkins said.

Reuters was unable to immediately determine whether Elkins had such a history.

Police were working to determine the motive, Mr Bordelon told KSLA.

US House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson, a Shreveport native, on social media called the shooting a “heartbreaking tragedy”.

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry said on social media that he and his wife were “praying for everyone affected”.

Not including the incident on April 19 in Shreveport, the Gun Violence Archive lists at least 119 mass shootings in the United States in 2026, resulting in 117 deaths, including 79 children, and 458 people injured.

The archive defines a mass shooting as an incident in which at least four people, not including the shooter, are injured or killed by gunfire. The United States had 407 mass shootings in 2025, according to archive data. REUTERS