New Year’s Eve turned fatal for three California families after a dispute over laundry sent one man over the top, shooting and killing three before his own son wrestled the gun away and shot his father down in order to stop the bloody rampage.
Over the last three years, sheriff’s deputies were called to the Morey family residence in Rowland Heights 25 times for various disturbance, but this New Year’s Eve proved a disturbance on a whole different level.
Thirty-three-year-old Christopher Morey phoned 911 Thursday night stating four people in his home had been shot to death, one of which was Morey’s own father.
According to sheriff’s Lt. John Corina, the incident occurred just after 8:30 p.m., when Morey’s 54-year-old father shot and killed his bedridden wife, Christopher Morey’s girlfriend, as well as his friend, Ernesto Calzadilla. Thirty-three-year-old Morey then wrestled the gun away from his father and fatally shot him, firing only one shot.
The lone survivor of the evening was then booked and held on $1 million bail for suspicion of murder while prosecutors consider whether or not he should be criminally charged.
“We’ll see what the D.A. wants to do. We’re going to book him for what he did – he killed another human being,” Corina said.
Morey relatives have declined to comment on the incident thus far.
While investigators continue to figure out the cause of the tragic incident, Corina noted that everyone in the house had been drinking. He also stated authorities were digging into the allegation that the dispute may have stemmed from an argument over Christopher Morey’s girlfriend using the washing machine earlier in the day.
After speaking with neighbors, Corina stated, “We’re still trying to corroborate what exactly happened and his version of events. We’re still trying to piece it all together.”
So far, coroners have yet to release the identities of the victims, but at least one person has come forward to say Christopher Morey’s friend, 27-year-old Calzadilla, was her son, and among the victims.
According to neighbors, the Morey family was fairly typical. They were friendly, held barbecues in their backyard and were often generous, especially to Calzadilla, who was struggling financially while between jobs to support his 10-month-old daughter. Sadly, Calzadilla was scheduled to start a new job Monday.
Neighbors did say the Moreys were drinkers, though, and could sometimes get a bit loud. Authorities noted stacks of Bud Light near the front door of the house while still more empties filled a laundry basket and a nearby cardboard box.
Those close to the family say the two Morey men cared for their wife and mother, who had suffered several strokes previously. They say Morey’s father often worked long, arduous hours and the brunt of all that stress wore on both men.
A friend who grew up with Morey, 27-year-old Sean Tubbs, said, “They had to do everything for her.”
Others, including Tubbs, say Morey’s father was not the most welcoming of guests. He carried a gun constantly and was not entirely right in the head. Brother of the late Calzadilla, Wilfred Calzadilla, said the 54-year-old “wasn’t all there.” He even pulled a gun on Calzadilla several times, shooting at him at least one of those times.
“We told him not to come over here anymore,” he said, as tears rolled down his face.
According to Calzadilla, his brother was a frequent guest at the Morey home and was often treated with kindness and generosity, though, too. Morey and his late girlfriend frequently fed Calzadilla and would even give him money when he needed it.
Sadly, Calzadilla originally had plans to spend New Year’s Eve elsewhere with relatives, but ended up staying with the Morey’s, instead. That decision, tragically, cost him his life, simply because young Morey’s girlfriend had argued with Morey’s father over using a washing machine. When Calzadilla’s family heard the news, toasting the New Year with apple cider, they prayed their loved one was not among the victims, but they soon learned he was.
“We heard it on the news and we kept hoping it wasn’t my brother,” Calzadilla said, “But they told us it was.”
People are emotional animals. When guns are added into the mix, especially with alcohol involved, tragedy almost always ensues.
Featured image by Ichcha Bharadwaj via WikiMedia, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial license.
