A man from Louisiana has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder after allegedly stabbing several members of his own family.
On January 9, police responded to a domestic disturbance call in St. Helena Parish. When officers arrived, they found Rhonda Powell, 40, her son Braylon, 10, and her nephew Hayden, 1, all dead from stab wounds... Continue reading here ▶
The police arrested Ryant Jones, 31, who was Powell’s brother and had a history of schizophrenia. Hayden was also Jones’ son.
Deondra Robertson-Warner, a cousin of Rhonda Powell, shared on a GoFundMe page that Jones was going through a mental health crisis at the time of the attack.
She explained to WAFB, a local CBS affiliate, that the day before the killings, Jones’ family had tried to get him help when he began showing aggressive behavior.
Warner said Jones’ family asked the doctor to give him an injection, which usually helped, but the doctor gave him a pill instead. They also requested that Jones be committed to a hospital for treatment, as they felt he should not be sent home due to his aggressive behavior. Jones believed that people were plotting against him.
Jones was sent home, and Warner believes that if he had been committed, the tragedy could have been avoided. She told WAFB, “No one in that home survived because the mental health system failed him.
Had he been committed, he would be where he needed to be today, and my other family members would be alive.” Warner expressed her sorrow, saying that her aunt now has to bury three family members and worry about the future of the other one.
Jones is being held at the Livingston Parish Detention Center.
