S.C. mom who killed kids tells husband to ‘rot’ in suicide note
A South Carolina woman who killed her two children and a 28-year-old woman before turning the gun on herself left behind a series of suicide notes, including one for her estranged husband.
Jessica Edens had been locked in a heated custody battle with her husband, Ben Edens, when she was found dead alongside their 5-year-old daughter, Harper Edens, and her 9-year-old son, Hayden King, inside a locked, running jeep on July 13.
“To Ben, you have caused me more pain than I’ve been in my life. You have caused my children pain. I hate you,” she said in the hand-written note. “I hope you rot one day for what you have done to me and my kids.
“You can no longer hurt us. We are at peace. I hope you live with pain and shame and guilt for the rest of your life.”
Hayden King, 9, and Harper Edens, 5, were killed by their mother in South Carolina. (Handout)Ahead of the deadly attack, Edens was left distraught by a Family Court proceeding the same week of the shooting, according to the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office press release.
Authorities used a baton to smash the window of the Edens’ vehicle parked on Greenville Pickens Speedway and described the scene that followed as “graphic and heartbreaking.”
The mother and both children suffered fatal gunshot wounds, according to the coroner. Deputies said Edens went to her parents’ home before the attack and stole a .40 caliber handgun, which is the same firearm that was used to kill Meredith Rahme. She was also found shot to death in a parking garage of her apartment in downtown Greenville the same day.
Rahme, identified as Ben Eden’s acquaintance, reached out to officers ahead of her murder, inquiring about obtaining a restraining order.
Jessica Edens (pictured) fatally shot her 5-year-old daughter, Harper Edens and her 9-year-old son, Hayden King, inside a locked, running Jeep in South Carolina. (Facebook)Police have closed the investigation and dubbed the incident a murder-suicide, according to the statement. Authorities released a series of documents, including the suicide notes, as well as supporting dashcam footage with the hope of shedding light on the case, WSPA reported.
In a note to the father of her son, Edens apologizes for the pain she’s inevitably caused him, WYFF reported.
“To Nate, I don’t know what to say. You gave me my first child. I will be forever greatful (sic) because of you,” she said. “I never meant to cause you as much pain as this.”
The note Edens left behind for her family took on a similar tone — she apologized to them for being “selfish,” but explains she “cannot live with this pain longer. I just cannot handle it.
“It is too much,” she wrote. “It hurts too much.”
Send a Letter to the Editor
Comments
Post a Comment