McALLEN, Texas (AP) — A 6-year-old boy has died after authorities say he was shot by his mother's boyfriend at a South Texas hotel in an attack that also killed his 1-year-old half-brother, a family member said Thursday.
Jaydin Thompson's great-aunt Dianne Cerny said the boy was taken off life support and died Wednesday evening. Cerny has been speaking on behalf of the family since the boys were shot Tuesday, the same day their mother's body was found hidden in a shack in their hometown.
Jaydin's 21-month-old half-brother, Davian Bluntson, died in the shooting in the Laredo hotel. Demond Bluntson, the younger boy's father, is charged with capital murder and aggravated assault in the attack. Laredo Police spokesman Joe Baeza said the assault charge likely will be upgraded after Jaydin's death.
Bluntson, 36, is being held on $2.5 million bond and could face yet more charges in El Campo where police believe he killed his 28-year-old girlfriend Brandy Cerny — the boys' mother — and dumped her body at a property where his father lives.
El Campo police Chief Stanphill said a preliminary autopsy determined Cerny likely died of multiple gunshot wounds.
Cerny and her sons were last seen in church Sunday in El Campo. Dianne Cerny said Davian loved playing and exploring, and described Jaydin as being just like his mother.
"He always had an arm around someone, especially his mom and little brother, and he was always laughing and smiling and loving life," she said Thursday. She said Jaydin's family had decided to donate the boy's tissue.
Brandy Cerny's father reported her missing Monday morning after she did not show up for work. El Campo police called their counterparts in Laredo the next day to check on a lead that the family had checked into a Laredo Holiday Inn.
Laredo police said they later determined only Bluntson and the boys had checked in. Officers knocked on their room door about midday Tuesday and immediately heard several gunshots.
Police say when they entered the room, they found Bluntson had shot and killed Davian and wounded Jaydin. Their mother's body was found hours later, in a green shack hidden among trees behind a small house and a mobile home, on an El Campo property where Bluntson's father lived.
Brandy Cerny's family described her as a compassionate and hard-working woman who had earned a bachelor's degree in psychology and was pursuing a master's.
"Brandy worked tirelessly as a single mother to give her sons every opportunity this world had to offer," Dianne Cerny said.
Dianne Cerny said her niece had ended her relationship with Bluntson, but there was "hardly a time when you saw Brandy without her precious sons."
"Our hearts are forever broken and we as a family speak out against domestic violence and ask that anyone who feels threatened seek the necessary help to break free," she said. "Brandy was in the process of breaking free."
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Associated Press writer Diana Heidgerd in Dallas contributed to this report.