A dispute between an uncle and his niece over a multi-million dollar trust fund turned deadly last week. The uncle, Lucius Hamilton, murdered his niece and her four year old son in their suburban home before fleeing the scene. Hamilton’s presence was known because the husband of the victim checked the family closed circuit monitor and saw Hamilton in the house before driving home and making the gruesome discovery. A manhunt was launched for the killer and initially focused at Wabash College, where Hamilton worked as a donations coordinator, but he was later tracked down and found in a room at the Indianapolis Hilton. When police knocked on the door to the room Hamilton fatally shot himself without leaving any indication about what provoked the murder. Friends stated that he had begun to withdraw from the presence of others several years ago when his brother died but otherwise showed no signs of mental distress. No word on when funeral services will be conducted for the victims.
See Kelly McLaughlin & Anneta Konstantinides, Husband was watching home security footage from work when Indiana college administrator killed his wife and son, four, in fight over multi-million dollar family trust, The Daily Mail, February 19, 2016.
Special thanks to Joel Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.
