More details have emerged regarding Rodrick Dantzler, the main believed responsible for the mass murders of seven people in Grand Rapids last week. Among the dead are his wife, ex-girlfriend and relatives of both — but members of his family continue to defend him even after the horrific incident — which including the execution style killing of at least one victim. “These were no strangers – they were family members,” a cousin, Cannetha Collins of Muskegon, said Saturday. “He just couldn’t possibly be in the right mind. They were just at Michigan’s Adventure. This was not a family he hated.” Police have determined the .40-caliber handgun used in the killings was stolen from a home in Kent County, Hertel said. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives is looking into the history of the firearm. As an felon, Dantzler, who served a three-to-10-year sentence for felony assault, could not legally possess a gun. He also had previous convictions for domestic violence, property destruction and assault and battery. In an interview Saturday, Collins said her family is devastated, both by the losses and the thought that Dantzler is responsible. She felt a need to apologize, but said her family is overwhelmed by grief, too. His mother, Victoria Dantzler of Grand Rapids, is beyond distraught: she lost a granddaughter, a son and daughter-in-law. It was she who first called police Thursday saying Dantzler had told her he had killed his wife. A possible motive began to emerge Saturday when Dantzler’s Janes Avenue neighbors said his wife was planning to leave him this week or the next. They speculated it sparked the killings. Police say Dantzler shot and killed his wife, Jennifer Heeren, 29, their daughter, Kamrie, 12, and his wife’s parents, Thomas Heeren, 51, and Rebecca Hereen, 52, in the parents’ home at 1270 Brynell Court NE off Four Mile Road NW. Dantzler also killed a former girlfriend, Kimberlee Emkens, 23, her sister, Amanda Emkens, 27, and Marissa Emkens, 10, Amanda’s daughter, at the home of Patricia Emkens at 2046 Plainfield Ave. NE. “I do know we love Rodrick Shonte Dantzler – and he’s no monster,” Collins said. “I truly apologize to the families, and anyone else hurt. Shonte loved his family. “We still love him. Nobody in our family was afraid of him. He had a big and loving heart,” she said. “I do believe it was something to do with his mind.” Dantzler’s family believes his actions may have been caused in part by his failure to take the medication he had been prescribed to treat his bi-polar disorder — while police say he had been using alcohol and cocaine. SMH.That yayo is the devil. His cousin is real nice sticking up for him, but friends of his wife say their relationship was abusive and she had been trying to leave him for some time. Source
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