New details are emerging about the gunman in the deadly Sutherland Springs church shooting.
Officials confirmed Sunday afternoon 26 people died in the mass shooting at the church in the small town near La Vernia. Officials say 20 others were injured.
The shooter was identified as Devin Kelley, 26, of New Braunfels. He died after a chase involving a local resident. Investigators believe Kelley died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, but explained that the pathologist will confirm the cause of death.
Kelley graduated New Braunfels High School in 2009. His family lives off Highway 46, a few miles north of the school. Comal County Sheriff’s deputies have restricted access to the family’s home.
People in the New Braunfels area are going online and sharing what they know about Kelley. Some of them say he was unstable with marital issues. We learned he was court-martialed in 2012 and was discharged for bad conduct from the military.
His court-martial involved domestic abuse charges toward his ex-wife and her child. He spent one year in confinement for those charges, according to military officials.
This summer, Kelley worked as an unarmed night security guard for 5 1/2 weeks at Schlitterbahn in New Braunfels, according to a statement from the waterpark. He passed a criminal background check through the Texas Department of Public Safety.
People who knew him say he was very judgmental. They provided a yearbook photo of Kelley. Some said he often posted rude comments on Facebook. They said his most recent comments were dark and indicated he was going through relationship problems and possibly a break-up.
Kelley's gruesome assault appears to have stemmed from a domestic dispute, authorities said Monday.
The Texas Department of Public Safety explained Kelley had sent threatening text messages to his mother-in law, who had previously attended services at the church but was not there during the deadly rampage on Sunday.