Retired Doctor Charged With Killing His 95-Year-Old Mother
CROWN POINT, Ind. (STMW) -- A retired doctor from Northwest Indiana is facing murder charges after authorities said he killed his 95-year-old mother and then shot himself in the face, but survived.
Charles Odell Davidson, 77, of Dyer shot his mostly bedridden mother, Blach Bradley, in her chest and knee, and then turned the gun on himself Monday morning, authorities said.
Davidson was found with the gunshot wound shortly after 6 a.m. Monday when police were called to his home, police said.
Officers found Davidson's son, Darryl, tending to his father and Bradley dead on her bed, police said.
Davidson told police he "shot her twice and then I shot myself. I did this wrong. I shouldn't have shot myself in the mouth. I should have shot myself in the chest," authorities said.
Davidson was taken to St. Margaret Mercy in Dyer and later transferred to the Methodist Hospitals Southlake Campus. His wound was not considered life-threatening.
Davidson told police he was terminally ill and didn't want to be a burden on his family. His wife, Fredricka, told police her husband had been very ill and was diagnosed with cancer.
Davidson was the primary caregiver for his mother, who was mostly bedridden, authorities said. He had just been released from the hospital, and the couple's son on Sunday had traveled to their home from out of state to help Fredricka care for Charles Davidson and Bradley.
Police recovered two .38-caliber revolvers and ammunition from the home.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2012. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
