Montana Girl, 12, Hailed as Hero for Calling 911 During Shooting That Killed 8 Family Members

Charlotte Ghekiere called 911 from inside her family's home Sunday evening as a gunman opened fire, a desperate act that relatives now describe as an attempt to save the people around her. The 12-year-old was among eight family members killed before the house burned to the ground outside Billings, Montana.

The suspected gunman was Alan Smith, 44, according to Brad Ireland, whose ex-wife and two children were among those killed. Ireland said Smith returned to the home weeks after his parents had asked him to move out. His parents were also killed.

The victims spanned four generations of a blended family, ranging from a great-grandmother in her 90s who used a wheelchair to Ireland's 7-year-old daughter, Chloe. Jennifer Mercer, a neighbor and family friend who set up fundraisers for the survivors, said she was authorized to share those details.

Police responding to the home Sunday evening said they heard gunshots from the back of the property just before the house became fully engulfed in flames. By Tuesday, investigators confirmed that eight people had been killed, including four children, and that the suspected gunman died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Firefighters battled the blaze until about 1 a.m. Monday, according to Billings Fire Chief Matt Hoppel.

The fire burned the home to its foundation, complicating the investigation, Billings police spokesperson Jeff Stovall said. The department said its thoughts are with the families and everyone affected. The subdivision sits outside city limits and is not required to have fire hydrants, and efforts to fight the fire were delayed until the scene was secure, allowing the blaze to tear through the home.

Those killed included Megan Ghekiere, Adam Ghekiere's wife and Ireland's ex-wife; Ireland's 13-year-old son, Owen; his 7-year-old daughter, Chloe; Adam's 15-year-old son, Landon; and Adam's 12-year-old daughter, Charlotte. Landon had been preparing to start his sophomore year at Billings Senior High School, and Charlotte was set to begin seventh grade.

Mercer called Charlotte "the hero." "Charlotte called 911 and she tried to save her family," Mercer said. "And that's something the family does want out there."

Adam Ghekiere, who works at the Billings airport, said he heard about an active shooter on a dispatch radio and raced across town while trying to call each family member. When he arrived, the house was already in flames. Two hours later, he learned his wife and children were dead. He said his children were not supposed to be at the dinner that night because the family usually gathered on Fridays.

"I don't think he expected my kids to be there," Ghekiere said of Alan Smith. "Monster isn't even enough to describe what he did."

Police confirmed that Charlotte made the 911 call. Ghekiere recalled the phrase she used to end conversations. "I keep hearing her quote to me every time I would say 'I love you' and she would say 'I love you more,'" he said.

Mercer described the family as close and loving, with children who got along and adults who remained amicable after divorces. "I feel like our entire community is devastated, even people that never knew any of them," she said.

The Smith family was originally from the Seattle area. After Ireland and Megan Ghekiere divorced six years ago, she moved to Billings with their children and later married Adam Ghekiere, who was working and not at home during the attack. Megan's parents, Dana and Barb Smith, followed and bought a house near their daughter. Dana's elderly mother, Evelyn Smith, lived in a nearby retirement community.

Alan Smith had lived with his parents for years before they asked him to leave a couple of weeks ago, Ireland said. He returned Sunday evening as the family gathered for their weekly dinner. Ireland said Smith killed his grandmother, his parents, his younger sister and the four children, then set the house on fire and tried to flee.

"There were many red flags and many people spoke out," Ireland said. "No one listened."

Ireland said Alan Smith had been a "hermit" who spent most of his time in his room on his computer. "No one knew what he did in there 24/7," he said. He had attended Eastern Washington University but had been unable to find or hold a job. A search of criminal records in Montana and Washington found no prior arrests or charges. Ireland said Smith had never been violent, to his knowledge, though he could be verbally abusive.

By Wednesday morning, a GoFundMe for Adam Ghekiere had raised nearly $100,000, and a separate campaign for Landon and Charlotte had raised more than $60,000.

The Sunday attack was the 22nd mass killing in the United States this year, according to a database maintained by The Associated Press and USA Today in partnership with Northeastern University. Fifteen of those cases stemmed from domestic disputes, a higher share than the long-term average of about 50%, said James Alan Fox, a criminologist at Northeastern who manages the database.

Sunday's shooting was the deadliest U.S. mass killing since April, when a Louisiana father fatally shot eight children, including seven of his own, and wounded his wife and another woman.