"This crime is another tragedy of domestic violence. Two children have been left without a mother. There is no excuse and no good explanation for this sort of violence."
That's how Chester County District Attorney Thomas Hogan described a murder-suicide that left a woman and her estranged boyfriend dead and a Pennsylvania YMCA, filled with children, on lockdown.
Dennis Cassel ambushed and killed his estranged girlfriend, 41-year-old Jacinda Miller, as she arrived to work Monday evening at the Brandywine YMCA on the 200 block of Hurley Road in West Brandywine, according to county prosecutors.
An East Brandywine officer responded to the lot on the west side of the YMCA shortly before 6 p.m. to find a man, later identified by prosecutors as Cassel, kneeling over Miller's body. As the officer approached, Cassel shot himself with a semi-automatic handgun, according to investigators.
An investigation revealed that Cassel, 42, shot Miller, a mother of two, as she got out of her car, according to investigators.
More than 100 people, including children in day care and after-school programs, were inside the YMCA when it was placed on lockdown after the shootings. All staff and children inside the building were evacuated safely and no other injuries were reported, said Hogan.
Doctors at a nearby hospital pronounced both Miller and Cassel dead a short time after the shooting.
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"Our prayers are with the families," Hogan said. "We thank the YMCA staff and our first responders for making sure that the scene was secured immediately and none of the children at the YMCA were harmed."
SUICIDE PREVENTION: If you know someone who needs help, you can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
