John Caudle, 14, Kills Parents Over Chores, Say Colo. Police

By: Ryan Smith
Topics: Daily Blotter

(Personal Photo)

MONTE VISTA, Colo.(CBS/AP) Chores are never a teenager's favorite way to spend a fall afternoon, but for 14-year-old John Caudle chores were the motive for murder, Colorado police say.

Photo: John Caudle.

In an arrest affidavit, Caudle told investigators that on Oct. 26, 2009 he argued with his mother because he didn't want to do household chores like taking out the trash or cleaning his room. Then he said he went to a gun safe, removed two .22 caliber pistols and shot his mother dead.

Caudle said he then hid in a laundry room and shot his stepfather when he
walked past a short time later.

Family members found the bodies.

Photo: Tracy and Joanne Rinebarge.

After allegedly killing his parents, he spent the evening watching movies and playing on a computer.

The next morning, Caudle even drove his stepfather's truck to school, according to KUSA-TV.

His friends and teachers said that Caudle seemed "happy" the day after the murder, investigators said.

Authorities have charged Caudle as an adult in the slayings. He faces two counts of first-degree murder.

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by ali_dunn March 8, 2011 5:02 PM EST: john is an amazing kid you would never no there obviously had to be something wrong in that house because i remember seeing john mad once or twice and it wasnt pleasant but it was never to the extremes about killing any one he loved his mom at least i no that he even said it he didnt want her to feel pain yet did he even no his mom she did suffer from drug abuse and wasnt around much i love john and hope we meet again; Reply to this comment


by InloveForever January 24, 2011 3:57 AM EST: I met this boy..
I reciently got out of the pueblo hospital
Kind of recient
And he is so good.
He is amazing,
And he is so happy
I believe....
His parents were BAD
Because everything he said about them
Of course.
At the time i didn't know about this
But he talked to the leader Katie,
About her.
And him and i talked
And he helped me fix a lot of my problems too
I don't think he belongs there..; Reply to this comment

by fancyface06 November 10, 2010 12:28 PM EST

I dont care what happend to that boy if his parents did something wrong to him he should of got the cops involved. There shouldnt be guns around kids in the first place! 2 wrongs dont make a right and yes he should be put away for a long time. And everyone knows that kids dont like doing chores so some ppl stay quite and then explode thats how alot of ppl are I dont feel bad for that kid at all that was his parents.

Reply to this comment


by InloveForever January 24, 2011 4:00 AM EST: HAHA
You sicken me
I met him
He is one of the MOST well put together people i know
I was in the hospital with him
I was a patient too
No i didn't kill anyone
I was there for different reasons
But he inspired me
And he changed me
John is an amazing kid
And i don't think you have the right to say that
He didn't JUST kill then because of chores
He killed them because the way he was treated since he was a child!

by lucybear17 January 29, 2010 8:46 PM EST

John Caudle was abused and neglected from the time he was a baby. That's not an excuse but it certainly should be taken into consideration. But it seems the district attorney is hell-bent on locking him up and throwing away the key. Nothing can change this tragedy but vengeance is not going to heal any wounds.

Reply to this comment


by justiceforJoanneandTracy January 30, 2010 6:32 PM EST: Where you there? John murdered Joanne and Tracy. He admits that. Over household chores. Not abuse or that they were terrible parents. He hid the guns, making the murders premeditated. He coldly and cruelly took their lives and then watched movies and played video games. He slept in that house with their dead bodies. I believe that the DA is right on. He needs to be locked away for life. So that no one else is ever hurt by him.


by lucybear17 January 31, 2010 8:03 PM EST: Were you there???? Do you know what it's like to be a 14 year old abused kid? The John I know is a sweet, shy, kind-hearted kid. What had to happened to turn him into a killer?? I'm sorry for your loss but throwing this kid in jail for the next 40 years will not bring your friend back. If John did this then he needs to be punished but putting him away for 40 years does not help society. It just makes you feel better. And makes the DA look like a big shot so he can get re-elected.


by justiceforJoanneandTracy January 28, 2010 4:11 PM EST: No one deserves to die the way these two wonderful people died. As to the comment about Tracy, he was a very caring and gentle person and was well loved by everyone in the community.; Reply to this comment


by adepelsmaeker2648 January 28, 2010 1:16 PM EST: It's very sad two lives gone and childhood over. I have a son that's 16 months old I will make sure I do everything I can to make sure he grows up okay.; Reply to this comment

by adepelsmaeker2648 January 27, 2010 9:46 PM EST

I agree with you yoyoinla. I think there maybe was abuse going on in the home?

Reply to this comment


by cfradet46 January 28, 2010 10:23 AM EST: I don't care what was going on in the home. He didn't have any right to take a life, never mind 2. He was old enough to find help from other sources if their was abuse. Now he faces life in prison. The violence on TV and the movies has got to stop. Kids think it's OK to KILL.


by InloveForever January 24, 2011 4:04 AM EST: There was...
He told me about it...
Of course he didn't tell me what he did
He was on a gag order
And we were in a mental hospital
Of course he should of taken it to the police
And he should be in the hospital for some help
But don't we all?

by Phxfire January 27, 2010 8:12 PM EST

A little sociopath who would most likely end up destroying many more lives if he wasn't in custody. I wonder if he had previous problems with lack of empathy or caring for pets, etc. It just reads as a classic case.

Reply to this comment


by lucybear17 January 30, 2010 1:31 PM EST: Just to clarify, I've known John since he was a baby. He was a sweet, caring, intelligent child. We never saw any signs that he was a sociopath or anything close to it. Great with little kids, gentle with animals. Whatever happened out at that house is not so easily explained as a "classic case."

by FastSailR January 27, 2010 5:50 PM EST

Guns don't kill people. Household chores kill people.

Reply to this comment


by fancyface06 November 10, 2010 12:50 PM EST: Really?

by jankebenzone January 27, 2010 4:38 PM EST

Society has to ask, why are more and more children killing their parents or classmates when ever things don't go their way? The "experts " say it has nothing to do with media violence or lack of discipline in schools , at home or that Christian principles and fear of God is no longer taught. Seems the "experts" don't know what they're talking about , and it's high time to go back to the way it should be.

Reply to this comment


by Living_the_High_Life January 27, 2010 4:56 PM EST: But the "experts" say that if we punish kids for doing something wrong then we're bad. We should listen to them instead. Don't forget that. People NEED to stop listening to the expert idiots and start being parents!


by newsterl January 27, 2010 11:57 PM EST: "christian principles and fear of god is no longer taught."

GOOD! that's a good thing, remember, the book of death is just chock FULL of death violence, blood, bloodshed and worse, it demands stoning to death for adultry and other minor "crimes" it promoted and approved of SLAVERY as well as subversion of women as property of the man.
It calls for brutal deaths of innocent animal for "sin sacrifice" and is single handedly responsible for the brutal deaths and brutality perpetrated against billions of animals thru history by the inclusion of the concept that man has DOMINION over all the animals to use and use up.
Oh yes, lets all go back to a backwards thinking 2,000 year old book of dubious origins, crafted, schemed and written by men with political, power, greed and other agendas in mind.
Remember, gezus loves you but he needs your MONEY, and lots of it!!!
I'll explain why theres more violence, I know exactly why and one only needs look to nature and animals for the answer, not some fictional sky santa claus!
The key operative word is;

OVERPOPULATION

When animals overpopulate their habitat, or it no longer supports their numbers as in the case of a multi year drought, forest fires, floods, they start killing each other or disease sets in. Rats will kill one another, carnivores attack and kill others of their species because of the competition for dwindling food, water, turf and mates.

You see exactly all of that now in humans, the US population in 1900 was 75 million, in 1950 it doubled to 150 million and now its doubled again to over 305 million. The land is the same size it was, but now there's 400% more people than just 110 years ago crammed into cities, squabbling over space, turf, jobs, resources.
Its no coincidence the urban cities see the most, and most violent crimes per capita- rape, robbery, burglary, car theft, petty theft, assaults, arsons, murders, gang violence, gun violence and worse.