Cedar Rapids police: Son kills mother, father, sister

CEDAR RAPIDS — A 20-year-old son shot his sister, mother and father to death, authorities said Tuesday night after a day of investigating the discovery of the bodies inside a northeast Cedar Rapids home.

Alexander Ken Jackson, 20, has been arrested and faces three counts of first-degree murder, a public safety spokesman said. The spokesman identified the three murder victims as Jan Perry Jackson, 61; Melissa Ferne Jackson, 68; and Sabrina Hana Jackson, 19.

Cedar Rapids police responded to a call at 8:23 a.m. about a possible shooting inside the house at 4414 Oak Leaf Court NE. Police did not say who placed the call.

There, officers found the father, mother and sister dead of gunshot wounds. They also found Alexander Jackson with a gunshot wound to the foot that police described as non-life- threatening. He was taken to UnityPoint Health-St. Luke’s Hospital for treatment, and was arrested afterward and booked Tuesday night into the Linn County Jail.

He does not have an adult criminal record in Iowa, according to online court records. Police did not provide a possible motive for the shooting.

The bodies were found inside a home that sits at the end of a cul-de-sac in a neighborhood that people who live there describe as quiet — until Tuesday morning.

None of the neighbors interviewed said they heard any gunfire. But some saw a police vehicles arriving.

Anita Hansen, who lives across the street a few doors down, said she had seen the Jackson couple out walking a dog recently. About 8:15 a.m. Tuesday, Hansen said she was getting ready for the day when she heard a siren approaching and looked out her bathroom window.

She said she saw an officer get out of his police car holding a rifle “and I just thought, ‘Whoa, this isn’t like someone fell or had a heart attack or something,’” she said.

Over the next several minutes, more and more police vehicles arrived, including an ambulance, a fire truck and a police dog unit.

At first, she said she was alarmed because she didn’t know if there was an imminent safety threat. But as the activity started to focus on the Jackson house, she realized something bad must have happened there.

Another neighbor, Priti Parikh, said her husband was leaving for work about 8:30 a.m. when he saw all the police cars and came back inside to say that something was happening next door.

“I came out and all I saw were police cars — they were all lined up right here,” she said, gesturing to the curb in front of her house and the house next door.

At first, she said she couldn’t figure out which house police were responding to, but as more cars showed up and filled the cul-de-sac, she realized it was the Jackson house.

“They have been good neighbors,” she said. “They are really good people — nice people.”

Real estate records show the Jacksons bought the home in 2011.

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