Chester deaths ruled murder- suicide

The superintendent of Chester-Joplin-Inverness shot his estranged wife before turning the .357 caliber pistol he used on himself, the Liberty County sheriff said in a press release Thursday.

The deaths of Francis LaBounty, 47, and his wife, Tanya, 42, have been ruled a murder-suicide, Sheriff Doug Riggin said in the press release. Their bodies were found in Tanya LaBounty’s residence at 11:29 a.m. Tuesday, leading to a lockdown of the Chester schools.

The district informed the media and posted on its website a notice that it would not authorize media to interview or film staff and students during school hours or on school property.

“The Board of Trustees of Chester-Joplin-Inverness School District is committed to keeping our focus on the interests of our students given the unfortunate circumstances that have impacted our community,” the district said in the release. “As such, school and school activities will continue as scheduled. Counseling and related services will be available at the school for students and staff.”

The LaBountys had just started their jobs at the CJI school district this summer, and their deaths follow a year of tumult in the district.

Tanya LaBounty, a teachers aide at CJI High School, had moved to a new residence this month following her husband’s arrest Dec. 1 for a domestic disturbance. The courts granted her a temporary restraining order against Francis LaBounty following the incident.

The bodies and the .357 caliber pistol were found in her residence where the bodies were discovered. The finding that the incident is a murder-suicide came after the bodies were taken to Billings for autopsies.

Francis LaBounty had come to CJI from his previous job in Brockton, taking the place of Thad Kaiser, who left the district last summer.

Kaiser left following a controversy in which students protested a student athlete being suspended for allegedly threatening Kaiser during a confrontation with a teacher about comments the student made in the school newspaper.

The LaBounty’s deaths also follow the death of a former CJI student this fall which led to the schools being shut down to allow students and community members to attend memorial services Sept. 7 in Fairfield.

Lauryn Goldhahn, who had attended CJI, moved to Fairfield with her family this year. She died Aug. 27 due to injuries sustained in a traffic crash.