Florida man shoots to death daughter, six grandchildren: cops

Don Spirit, 51, seen here in this undated photo, shot and killed his daughter and his six grandkids outside of Gainesville, Fla., police say. He committed suicide after a deputy arrived.

A grandfather shot to death his grown daughter and his six grandchildren in a murder-suicide rampage in rural Florida on Thursday, police said.

The child victims ranged in age from 3 months to 10 years, according to Gilchrist County Sheriff Robert Schultz. What prompted the shooting frenzy was not revealed.

The grandfather, identified as Don Spirit, 51, called 911 to say he had "injured someone," the sheriff said. His daughter was identified as Sarah Spirit, 28, according to local reports. The killings took place at Don Spirit's home off a dirt road in Bell, population 350, located about 35 miles west of Gainesville.

Sarah Spirit, 28, seen here in a photo from her Facebook page, was shot dead by her father, Don Spirit, 51, who also killed six grandchildren at his Florida home before killing himself, police said.

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Gilchrist County Sheriff's Office named the six children Thursday: 3-month-old Alana Stewart, 4-year-old Brandon Stewart, 5-year-old Destiny Stewart, 8-year-old Johnathon Kuhlmann, 9-year-old Kylie Kuhlmann and 11-year-old Kaleb Kuhlmann.Spirit said the grandfather had a criminal history and that authorities had responded to previous 911 calls at the residence. He declined to elaborate.

In 2003, the Orlando Sentinel reported, a man named Don Spirit, then 40, pleaded guilty to being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm after accidentally shooting to death his 8-year-old son during a hunting trip two years earlier. The boy, named Kyle, was shot in the head when his father's high-powered Browning rifle went off while the dad was pointing out a rust spot. After the shooting, the family moved to Bell.

Spirit shot himself Thursday inside his home after a deputy arrived. There was a conversation between the two before Spirit turned the gun on himself, Schultz said. Details of that discussion were not made public.

"Pray for the families and the community," the sheriff said. "The poor children tomorrow when they go to school, they're going to have to deal with this."