Rural section of County Route 539 that runs through the Pine Barrens
The dead boy and girl, whose names have not been revealed, were shot at some time between Wednesday night and Thursday morning at 9 a.m., when police responded to the emergency call. The mother, 44-year-old Jeaninne LePage received a gunshot head wound, while another unnamed son was seriously injured - - both were airlifted by helicopter to a Camden hospital. The ages of all of the children have also been kept confidential.
Although none of the five other family members, who also live in the rural house, have been charged, the police investigators need to ask them why none of them heard any gunshots. It was one of the residents who made the call to the police, and attending officer State Police Lieutenant Gregory Giannone said that a chaotic scene was found when they entered the house - - Giannone's words were, "nothing can prepare you for this".
Police recovered the gun that they believe was used in the incident. They informed the media that, while no suspects have been identified, investigators are not searching widely for the assailant. They have also declined to state whether the shooting was a murder-suicide attempt, but confirmed that the case is being dealt with as a homicide. Speaking to the public, Captain Stephen Jones said: "We've dealt with a big tragedy here".
LePage's house is located in the small southern New Jersey town of Tabernacle, which is home to 7,000 people. The area, around 25 miles east of Philadelphia, is isolated, with one neighbor explaining: "There are days you have to wait for the deer to get out of the way to pull out of your driveway".
