Vigil planned for Ohio family of eight slain a week ago
By Kim Palmer
CLEVELAND (Reuters) - A vigil and fundraiser for eight family members shot execution-style in rural Ohio's Appalachian foothills, is expected to draw thousands of people on Friday evening, organizers said.
The members of the extended Rhoden family, ranging in age from 16 to 44, were shot on April 22 at four separate homes in a preplanned, "sophisticated operation," officials said.
A preliminary autopsy report showed all but one of the victims were shot multiple times and many were shot in the head as they slept, according to the Hamilton County coroner's office.
Federal and state officials found three marijuana cultivation sites at one of the homes, but have declined to say whether that might be linked to the deaths.
Investigators have said they are not assuming the massacre was committed by one person. Local media have quoted unnamed law enforcement officials as saying many theories are being considered, including a family feud or even the involvement of a Mexican drug cartel in the slayings.
The vigil will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. local time and is meant to raise funds to pay for the family's burials, organizer Stephanie Brownfield said in a telephone interview.
"We want to start the healing process for the entire county,” she said.
The event, "Pray for Pike County," will be held at the Pike County Fairgrounds, some 95 miles (150 km) east of Cincinnati.
Estimates of the cost of the multiple funerals are in the tens of thousands and co-organizer Dennis Tschundy said in a telephone interview that he wanted to take the burden off the family.
Some of the Rhoden family is expected to attend, as well as members of the Piketon Police Department, Pike County Sheriff Deputies and law enforcement from surrounding areas, Brownfield said.
On Thursday, Gary Rhoden, 38, was the first of the victims to be buried, in South Shore, Kentucky.
Six of the family members, including Christopher Rhoden Sr, 40; his ex-wife Dana Rhoden, 37; their three children Clarence "Frankie" Rhoden, 20, Hanna Rhoden, 19, and Christopher Rhoden Jr, 16; as well as Christopher Sr's brother Kenneth Rhoden, 44, will be buried on Tuesday in West Portsmouth, Ohio.
Hannah Gilley, 20, Clarence Rhoden's girlfriend and mother of a 6-month-old boy who was not injured in the shootings, will be buried Saturday in Waverly, Ohio.
In addition to Gilley's son, Hannah Rhoden's 5-day-old daughter, who was sleeping with her, and Clarence Rhoden's 3-year old son, survived.
(Editing by Ben Klayman and Matthew Lewis)
