Town Mourns Slain Family
Seth Privacky and Steven Wallace had no history of violence, yet authorities say the high school classmates committed an almost unfathomable crime, the fatal shootings of Privacky's father, mother, grandfather, brother and his brother's girlfriend.
"There was little sign of struggle, no tying up. But the shooting occurred with a definite plan of shooting all five," Muskegon County Prosecutor Tony Tague said Monday.
Privacky and Wallace, both 18, were to be arraigned on murder charges Tuesday.
The victims were Stephen Privacky, 50, a fifth-grade teacher in nearby Muskegon; his wife, Linda Privacky, 49, a receptionist at a medical office; their older son, Jedediah Privacky, 19; Jedediah's girlfriend, April Boss, 19, and Stephen Privacky's father, John Privacky, 78.
CBS News Correspondent Jacqueline Adams reports that the prosecutor spoke in horror about the crime scene.
 Steven Wallace |
Though they have two suspects in custody, police believe a third suspect may have helped move the bodies.
Deputies were called late Sunday when Boss' parents went to the Privacky house to look for their daughter. They told the Detroit Free Press that they pulled into the driveway and saw a man leaning over Stephen Privacky's body. The man ran into the house.
Police said they believe both suspects had returned to the house several hours after the shootings to try and conceal the bodies, then fled when Boss' parents arrived.
The couple rushed inside to call police, not knowing that four more bodies were strewn throughout the split-level home, Tague said.
Wallace was captured early Monday after running out of a wooded area near the crime scene in this western Michigan community about 45 miles northwest of Grand Rapids. He has given police a statement and appears to be cooperating, Tague said.
Seth Privacky, rain-soaked and shivering when police closed in him Monday afternoon in a barn, said nothing after his arrest, instead asking for a lawyer, Tague said.
Privacky was arrested for allegedly stealing beer from a store where he worked in 1996 and selling it to minors. The Detroit News reported that he successfully completed probation in that case.
 Police at crime scene |
Authorities have yet to find a murder weapon, though they did fin a gun clip that may be linked to the killings.
"What we have here is two young individuals who got involved in a very bad situation and attempted to cover it up," Tague said. He said authorities have not determined a motive and are investigating Seth Privacky's relationship with his family.
Friends of the family described the 18-year-old as an even-tempered teen-ager. Steve had mentioned to me how proud he was of Seth, so I'm not aware of problems," Gloria Lewis, one of Steve Privacky's co-workers.
"We're brokenhearted," said Ruth Parks, a neighbor of the Privackys for 20 years. "They were good people."
Said Lewis: "People here know his family; he has been here 25 years. They know Steve, Seth. At first it's such shock you can hardly comprehend what has happened."