18-year-old charged in shooting death of dad in Adrian, Missouri

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — An 18-year-old man from Adrian, Missouri, is currently in custody and faces multiple criminal charges after investigators say he shot and killed his adoptive father Saturday night.

According to arrest reports, Carter J. Curtis faces one count of first-degree murder and one count of armed criminal action for allegedly shooting his father with a rifle.

Court records said that on Saturday, Sept. 28, just after 11:20 p.m., deputies with the Bates County Sheriff’s Office went to a home in Adrian, Missouri, after receiving a call from a “male subject” claiming to have killed his father.

The subject, later identified as Curtis, originally did not give his location to the dispatcher, the sheriff’s office said. However, deputies were able to get the location of the victim and the shooting.

According to court records, an officer arrived at the home just after 11:30 p.m. and was met with two women in the driveway who were screaming, “he has never been violent.”

The officer then went upstairs into the kitchen where they found 41-year-old John McMurphy face down on the floor with a gunshot wound to the head.

Within about two minutes of finding McMurphy, deputies found Curtis about one block away from the shooting. He was taken into custody.

Court records said that at the time of the shooting, the wife of the victim claimed to have been awakened by the sound of a gunshot. She told law enforcement she then got up and walked into the hallway where Curtis was standing with a rifle. The wife told deputies he then handed her the weapon and said, “I already called 911,” and “I had to do it.”

Curtis is being held in a Bates County Jail on a “no bond warrant.”

The case is being investigated by the Adrian Police Department, the Bates County Coroner’s Office and the Bates County Sheriff’s Office.

“I want to thank everyone for their fast response to this incident. I take pride in working together to put the safety and security of this community first,” Adrian Police Chief Chris Dillon said .

“At this time, we still have a lot of investigation to continue but we can assure the community there is no additional danger relating to this incident. We would like to offer our condolences to the family and friends affect by this tragic event. We have no further information at this time”.

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