Custody dispute linked to deaths of Florida man, 10-year-old daughter
1/16/2013NEW BAVARIA, Ohio — A custody dispute may have triggered the murder-suicide of a Parrish, Fla., man and his 10-year-old daughter who were found in a vehicle parked on a rural Henry County road, authorities said.
Timothy R. Brown, 47, is accused of killing his daughter, Alexandra, and then turning the gun on himself Monday, Henry County Sheriff Michael Bodenbender said.
A custody case involving Brown and his ex-wife Nicole Brown was filed in 2009 in Florida’s Manatee County.
Craig Soria, an attorney for Ms. Brown, said a parenting coordinator was recently appointed in the Brown case.
The coordinator had met with Timothy Brown and the two had some kind of a disagreement that could have contributed to the deaths, Mr. Soria said.
The marriage was dissolved about two years ago and the parents had joint custody.
There was no immediate threat to Brown’s ability to spend time with his daughter, Mr. Soria said.
Sheriff’s deputies responding to a report of a suspicious vehicle found the bodies about 10:40 a.m. in a vehicle parked on Road 16-A in Pleasant Township.
Sheriff Bodenbender said the bodies had gunshot wounds.
A 9mm handgun was at the scene, he said.
The autopsies were scheduled Tuesday at the Lucas County Coroner’s Office, which referred all inquiries to Dr. Marek Skoskiewicz, Henry County coroner, who could not be reached for comment.
Brown was a Holgate High School graduate.
He leaves a father, who lives in the New Bavaria area, Sheriff Bodenbender said.
The sheriff said Brown’s father did not know that his son and granddaughter were in the area Monday. It was unclear why Brown and his daughter were there, the sheriff said.
Ms. Brown and Gregory Kramer, Timothy Brown’s attorney in the custody case, could not be reached for comment.
New Bavaria, which is southwest of Holgate, is about 12 miles southeast of Defiance which is about 55 miles southwest of Toledo.
Contact Mike Sigov at: sigov@theblade.com or 419-724-6089.