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Investigators have determined that Sheila Tegtmeier, who was found dead in her Ankeny, Iowa, home on January 4th, tried to strangle her 20-year-old autistic son, Rory Jr., before taking her own life. Officials only gradually pieced together what was happening; neighbors first wondered if a criminal was in the area. KCCI news (from Des Moines) reports:

Investigators said on Jan. 4, Tegtmeier called Ankeny Schools at 7:30 a.m. and said her son Rory Jr. was sick and she cancelled his bus pickup. Tegtmeier also called a siding company that was coming to work on her home and told them not to come because of a family matter. She then called her husband at his Ames office and left a message that she could not keep their 11 a.m. lunch appointment.

Police said following her phone calls Tegtmeier went to an upstairs bathroom and attempted to strangle her son with a cord.

During interviews with Rory Jr., 20, who has autism, investigators learned that Rory Jr. struggled to get free from the cord and forcefully pushed his mother away. He then hid in the basement, later telling investigators he was scared of his mother.

Rory Jr. told investigators he then heard a loud noise and rushed back upstairs to find his mother on the kitchen floor. Police said she had taken her own life.

Rory Sr. called home at 4:36 p.m. to talk to Sheila, but instead Rory Jr. answered and said, “mommy was dead.”
Rory Sr. called his brother-in-law who immediately drove to the home and discovered that Tegtmeier was indeed dead. He called 911 at 4:48 p.m…………………

Court documents describe Rory as “autistic and functioned at a low level of intelligence.”

Police recognized the marks around Rory’s neck, but didn’t immediately know who had tried to strangle him.
During the meetings with Rory Jr. that followed, more details about what happened finally came out.

Court documents show that when an officer asked Rory who put the marks on his neck, “He told me that they were put there by his mom. I continued to speaking with Rory, but it was very difficult to carry on a conversation with him or follow through on his thoughts or statements.”

The officer quoted Rory as saying, “His mom was mad, and then he said she was sad,” according to court documents.

Investigators said they have conclusively determined that Tegtmeier took her own life on Jan 4. following her attempt to strangle her son.

Police said medical records show that Tegtmeier was receiving treatment for depression and had been receiving treatment since 2005.

One asks why do these things happen—one hopes there are ways to keep them from happening again.

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