WHATLEY, AL – The Clarke County Sheriff’s Office has released new details in what authorities are calling a tragic case of domestic violence that left three people dead and a child seriously injured in the Whatley community on Sunday morning.
According to a news release from the sheriff’s office, deputies were dispatched to a home on Mary Aquilla Road just after 8 a.m. for a welfare check. Upon arrival, they discovered a horrifying scene.
Inside the residence, authorities found an 11-year-old girl suffering from gunshot wounds. She was immediately transported to Grove Hill Hospital before being airlifted to a trauma center in Mobile, where she remains in serious condition.
Further search of the home led deputies to the bodies of 39-year-old Ashley Danielle Howell and her 8-year-old son, both of whom had died from apparent gunshot wounds.
The alleged gunman, identified as 43-year-old Edward Bernard Raine, was also found dead at the scene from what investigators believe to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Authorities believe Raine fatally shot Howell and her young son, critically wounded her daughter, and then turned the gun on himself.
“Our hearts and prayers go out to the family of Ashley Danielle Howell during this devastating time,” said a spokesperson for the Clarke County Sheriff’s Office. “This tragedy is still under investigation.”
The Clarke County Sheriff’s Office is being assisted in the investigation by officers from the Jackson, Grove Hill, and Thomasville Police Departments, as well as the First Judicial Major Crimes Task Force.
In response to the tragedy, the Clarke County School Board has deployed grief counselors to the schools attended by Howell’s children to support grieving students and staff.
“We ask that the community keep Ms. Ashley’s daughter in your thoughts and prayers as she fights to recover,” the sheriff’s office added.
Authorities have not released further details about the circumstances that led to the shooting but confirmed the investigation remains active. Anyone with additional information is urged to contact the Clarke County Sheriff’s Office.
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