A domestic argument between mother and son turned into a heartbreaking tragedy with the teenaged son now dead and his mother facing a murder charge.
According to the arrest affidavit filed by police officers in Wichita, Kansas, the shooting happened around 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, October 9 at the apartment of Tesha Florence (Jenkins), 46, and her 16-year-old son Robert Florence.
It was Tesha who placed the 9-1-1 call, telling police that she’d shot her son in the forehead. When police arrived, they reported finding Robert lying face down in the living room with a single gunshot wound to the head.
He was alive when authorities arrived and transported to Wesley Medical Center in critical condition, but died to days later as a result of his injuries.
Tesha was detailed by police as “emotionally distraught” upon their arrival, with the affidavit stating she “fell to the ground and rolled around in distress,” when they went to handcuff her, crying out, “I shot my baby!”
According to responding officers, Tesha told them “she kissed her baby” and asked them to “just kill her,” according to Fox19. They detailed finding blood on her hands, the waist area of her shirt, and her face.
The arrest affidavit released this week and seen by ABC affiliate KAKE detailed that tragic morning that saw Tesha arguing with Robert because he didn’t want to go to school. She reportedly told police her son was a “bad kid,” into drugs, and would often not go to school.
She said that she was “irritated” that morning because Robert did not want to go to school. His 18-year-old brother was also frustrated, per police, because they were going to be late over Robert’s delayes.
Ultimately, Tesha agreed that Robert could stay home, per the legal documents, and even called the school to report him absent. She detailed to police, per the affidafit, that he kept nagging her and then told her he was going to go to their downstairs neighbors to get some “weed.”
Tesha claimed her begged to borrow her phone, but she wouldn’t allow it. She said he wanted her to call his brother so he could get him to ask their father for money. Tesha told police she allowed that call.
Robert continued to antagonize his mother, though, per Tesha’s statement to police, even going so far as to pull down the curtains and tear up paper, throwing the bits on the floor.
Tesha admitted to police she grew frustrated as her son was “pushing her buttons.” Things took a dramatic turn, according to the suspect, when Robert purportedly reached for her black backpack, where she kept her 9mm handgun, and pulled it out.
According to the affidavit, Robert made no threats nor did he point the gun at her. She said she grabbed it from his hands and pointed it at him, per the affidavit, telling her son, “Do you just want to die?”
It was at this point Tesha said the gun “went off” and Robert fell forward, per the documents. She told police she thought the gun was empty, alternately saying she had removed the rounds weeks ago before conceding she may have put a couple back in two weeks ago because she had to walk home from work.
Tesha told police she’d had the gun for about seven years and knew how to operate it. As reported in the affidavit, she said that when she took the gun from Robert, she “racked the slide back,” which would have dropped a round into the chamber from the magazine.
She denied to police that she ever intended to shoot her son, per the filings, but admitted she might have intended to discharge the gun to scare him. Police found a live round in the chamber of Tesha’s gun and two more in the magazine.
An investigation into this shooting led police to uncover a separate alleged incident with Tesha and the handgun. According to their findings, she had allegedly pointed a handgun at her ex-husband and his girlfriend while at his home in March. She’s facing charges of aggravated burglary and aggravated assault in that case.
The suspect is currently being held in the Sedgwick County Jail on $1.2 million bond, with her next court appearance set for Monday, October 28.
Robert’s older brother Kurtis Florence set up a GoFundMe to help cover funeral expenses. It has raised more than $22,000 toward its stated goal of $30,000.
