E118: Tonya Thomas

This week Beth and Wendy discuss the case of Tonya Shantez Thomas, a woman who committed familicide in May of 2012 in Port St John in Florida.

We thank our Patrons (4:15).  We get into some stats (8:14) and then we dive into the setting (11:53), the killers early life (31:35) and the timeline (36:05).  Then, we get into the investigation (48:41) followed by “Where are they now?” (49:49). We get into our takeaways and what we think lead to the crimes (52:06).  

As usual we close out the show with some tips on how not to get murdered (1:05:11) and some shout outs (1:07:53).  

Thanks for listening! This is a weekly podcast and new episodes drop every Thursday, so until next time… look alive y’all, it’s crazy out there!

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Shout Outs

We’ve Got Answers
https://www.audible.com/pd/Weve-Got-Answers-Audiobook/B08WF112B9

The Margaret Cho
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-margaret-cho/id1470515305

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Articles/Websites

Smith, Matt. (05/16/2012). Experts: Circumstances of Florida family slayings ‘really unusual’. CNN. Retrieved 04/17/2021 from https://www.cnn.com/2012/05/16/justice/florida-family-slain/index.html

Crimesider Staff. (05/21/2012). Florida Family Massacre: Tonya Thomas shot her kids 18 times before killing herself, reports say. CBS News. Retrieved 04/17/2021 from https://www.cbsnews.com/news/florida-family-massacre-tonya-thomas-shot-her-kids-18-times-before-killing-herself-reports-say/

Hanna, Jason. (05/16/2012). ‘I cried so much,’ schoolmate says after 4 kids slain. CNN News Blog. Retrieved 04/17/2021 from https://news.blogs.cnn.com/2012/05/16/i-cried-so-much-schoolmate-says-after-4-kids-slain/

Alsup, Dave; Martinez, Michael. (05/16/2012). Mom kills her children, herself at Florida home. CNN. Retrieved 04/17/2021 from https://www.cnn.com/2012/05/15/justice/florida-bodies/index.html

CBSMiami/AP. (05/16/2012). Woman Who Killed Four Kids, Self Reported Trouble In Her Home. Retrieved 04/17/2021 from https://miami.cbslocal.com/2012/05/16/woman-who-killed-four-kids-self-reported-trouble-in-her-home/

Caulfield, Philip. (05/19/2012). Neighbors of Florida mom who killed her 4 kids turned the children away when they tried to get help. New York Daily News. Retrieved 04/17/2021 from https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/neighbors-florida-mom-killed-4-kids-turned-children-article-1.1081103

Crimesider Staff. (05/21/2012). Florida Family Massacre: Tonya Thomas shot her kids 18 times before killing herself, reports say. CBS News. Retrieved 04/17/2021 from https://www.cbsnews.com/news/florida-family-massacre-tonya-thomas-shot-her-kids-18-times-before-killing-herself-reports-say/

Murderpedia. (n.d.). Tonya Thomas. Retrieved 04/17/2021 from https://murderpedia.org/female.T/t/thomas-tonya.htm

Barchenger, Stacey. (10/06/2012). Brevard murder-suicide case closed: Killer mom was drunk. Palm Beach Post. Retrieved 04/17/2021 from https://www.palmbeachpost.com/article/20121006/NEWS/812024335

The Associated Press. (05/18/2012). Fla. mom who killed self, 4 kids endured violence. Ocala Star Banner. Retrieved 04/18/2021 from https://www.ocala.com/news/20120518/fla-mom-who-killed-self-4-kids-endured-violence

WESH 2 News. (05/16/2012). Friends Remember 4 Children Killed By Mother. Retrieved 04/18/2021 from https://www.wesh.com/article/friends-remember-4-children-killed-by-mother/4416290#

Hoffer, Steven. (05/16/2012). Tonya Thomas Shooting: 911 Call Details Port St. John Mom’s Alleged Murder-Suicide (AUDIO). Huffpost. Retrieved 04/18/2021 from https://www.huffpost.com/entry/tonya-tanya-thomas-shooting-911-call-murder-suicide-florida_n_1522694

Daily Mail. (10/07/2012). Florida mother was drunk when she shot four kids and herself, autopsy reveals. Retrieved 04/19/2021 from https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2214220/Florida-mother-drunk-shot-kids-autopsy-reveals.html

Gallop, JD. (05/15/2012). Investigators: Port St. John mom kills 4 kids, herself. Florida Today. Retrieved 04/19/2021 from https://www.floridatoday.com/story/news/local/2012/05/15/investigators-port-st-john-mom-kills-4-kids-herself/77199550/

History

Wikipedia contributors. (01/22/2021). Port St. John, Florida. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 04/18/2021 from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Port_St._John,_Florida&oldid=1002119780

Wikipedia contributors. (04/09/2021). Estimated number of civilian guns per capita by country.Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 04/18/2021 from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Estimated_number_of_civilian_guns_per_capita_by_country&oldid=1016855482

Wikipedia contributors. (04/15/2021). Gun violence in the United States. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 04/21/2021 from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gun_violence_in_the_United_States&oldid=1017881317

Wikipedia contributors. (03/22/2021). Indigenous peoples of Florida. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 04/19/2021 from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Indigenous_peoples_of_Florida&oldid=1013669751

Wikipedia contributors. (12/26/2020). History of Brevard County, Florida. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 04/19/2021 from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=History_of_Brevard_County,_Florida&oldid=996491577

Granath, Bob. (07/01/2016). NASA Helped Kick-start Diversity in Employment Opportunities. NASA.gov. Retrieved 04/19/2021 from https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-helped-kick-start-diversity-in-employment-opportunities

How Not to Get Murdered

Hidden Weapons 
https://www.karatemart.com/hidden-weapons

Music

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Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

“Furious Freak” by Kevin MacLeod
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