Localboy, take a look down the page at my post just prior to the one you are commenting on. I said that we should all lobby to change the laws. Check your facts before you comment, and check yourself before you criticize a grieving family.

As everyone else has stated, if they wanted to prevent this from happening to other families, they would be lobbying for change of policy and laws, not seeking personal gain. This was a horrible tragedy. Her family should be trying to assure that other abusers with mental health issues are not released- not trying to line their pockets with money. Their motives are brought into question by their choice in lawsuits, and, their seeking monetary gain for the death of a child...

rodrigo - if they wanted their daughters death to be not in vain, then they would push for reform on what ever "error" was done by the county. What is getting a big chunk of money going to do? How is that going to solve anything? It isn't a rip if it is the truth. They look as if they are money hungry in this suit.

Also, the first thing on everyone's mind here is the tragic loss of the two people. Just wanted to clarify that. That's why the crisis team and police department work in the departments they do, and that's why the family is so distraught. We all wish they were still around ESPECIALLY THE FAMILY SO STOP MAKNG THEM OUT TO BE MONEY HUNGRY FOOLS!!! They're only trying to make sure that the death of their daughter wasn't in vain. Don't EVER judge the actions of someone who has lost a child unless you have lost one yourself.

The fact of the matter here is that we have county officials who are charged with the job of deciding if people are a danger or not, and what to do with them IF they are deemed to be a threat, which sometimes involves paying up to $1,000.00 per day for placement at one of the state institutions, which the taxpayers DO NOT like (trust me). I would have LOVED to have seen him put on a 51.15, put in crisis stabilization for the remainder of the week and the weekend to cool down, seen the 51.15 dropped in place of a 90-day settlement agreement and have seen the lives saved (as would have the police and crisis workers). The fact of the matter is that the crisis sector sees multiple suicidal/homicidal people per week (sometimes hundreds, the public DOESN'T HEAR ABOUT MOST OF IT) and has to send those people to the places that are deemed fit by both the law and the budget, which EVERYONE ON THIS BLOG HAS A RIGHT TO VOTE ON!!! If you want to see that changed, like saddened said, lobby to change the laws, don't persecute the people who have dedicated their own lives to saving the lives of others and maybe made a mistake while trying to make the right decision within the boundries of the law and the budget, and what is the safest decision for the public. Have any of the people criticizing the police and crisis workers here ever made a mistake at work? Try a job like these people have! Let's all work together to change the screwed up financially and politically based laws out there and END THIS TYPE OF CRAP!!!!

well if the family of jenni is suing the county and crisis dont you think it would make sense for shauns to sue jenni's family for not informing them...NO that makes no sense at all in that case people are looking at getting the money cause i bet as soon as a lawyer had contacted them or vise versa and told them they could gets lots of money that was the first thing on their mind instead of the tragic loss of their daughter.

Amen Rockstars

Why are the comments even enabled on this story? All people are doing is bashing the dead woman's mother. Gazette, can you turn off the comments on this story? They are vile and slanderous toward the family involved and apparently residents have no tact and are careless to the fact that the courts will handle this, not the average Joe.

Nothing will bring this couple back. The person responsible is dead. To sue Crisis Intervention and Rock County shows, me, the family memebers involved, in the lawsuit, did not have their loved ones best interest at heart when they were alive but SHOW ME THE MONEY, now they are dead.

Thank you MyAngel23.

In my opinion! No matter who is at fault here this lawsuit is not going to bring back Jenni or Shaun. It is not going to give anyone closure or answers. No one will truly ever know the EXACT incidents that led up to that tragic night.

All we know is what we hear on the news and see in the papers. There are only two people that can give us the real answers and they are resting in the heavens above us.

Janesvillean.....The victims of this waste of a lawsuit are the Edgerton police department and Rock County Crisis--By reading the attached posts, no one here is blaming them at all.

Dear Unknown - how do you know that the County made a mistake? Do you know all the details? As a Wisconsin Tax payer, I hope that you are wrong in that everyone would sue. That solves nothing. Changing laws and legislation and helping victims is the way to handle things.

I should have known Janesville would blame the victim.

Why is everyone so intent on blaming someone. First no one knows the truth. Maybe the family (Mother) did try to help but the people involved wouldnt take the help. Maybe the county did all they could and because of the law couldnt do anything else. When it comes to responsibilty, we all are responsible for our own actions and cannot blame anyone but ourselves for not doing more in situations like this. I pray for the family for their loss, and yes it is a shame that as soon as something happens, the first thing on someones mind is law suit. We are the people so if we do not like who is in politics, then we need to vote and make the changes. If you feel your votes dont count you are wrong. If you dont like a law, figure out a way to change it. Its life and we all need to stop complaining about it and do something instead to change it!

What are these gold diggers going to do with the money? Donate it to a worthy foundation? I highly doubt it. They see the possibility of a quick buck so theyre going to try and cash in. Its sad when people like this think so little of their deceased relatives that money will fix it all.

Its ridiculous to hold anyone "accountable" but the murderer himself...Holding someone for 3 days would not stop someone, taking the gun would not stop someone.. When someone has become enraged by paranoia, jealousy etc..- they will do whatever it takes- and wait til whenever.. This family that is suing is wasting their dollars, our dollars, and they are prolonging their healing.

unknown- Dane county made a mistake, but that is not what got that girl killed...a murderer killed her not the 911 center. Mistakes happen, sometimes it may lead to horrible outcomes but unless it is gross negligence you shouldn't win a lawsuit over it. Rock county did not kill this poor girl, her husband did. The family is out for money, why do I say this...because they are suing the police. The officers held the man on an emergency detention, it was dismissed...what the hell did the family want the police to do?? I am sorry this happened but it was the fault of a man that took his own life, he is the only one to blame.

No papers were signed by a family member. No information was given them because of patient privacy laws. Rock County has to follow those laws set up by our government. As I said earlier fight to change laws, not sue.

Hannah the 911 call to police by Jennifers mother was made on Wednesday before the shooting. His family did not know he had threatened suicide, no one informed them as to ANYTHING that was going on. When released to his family they were not informed of ANYTHING other than he needed a place to spend the night. They were not told that he had threatened suicide, that he had been picked up by the police, that he had been at intervention.

Yes there were mistakes made in this case, but a lawsuit is not going to solve anything. Jennifers mother wants to put blame everywhere but on not on herself. She has to be feeling horrible for not getting her daughter out of a dangerous situation, but $ will not make her feel better. Work towards reforming laws and helping people in similar situations instead of suing.

Yes I do know both families personally and Jennifers mother chose to do nothing on Saturday or Sunday to help either one of them. All it would have taken is one phone call from her or Jenny to his family and this might have been prevented. Shaun's family did not know that she had left him, did not know he had a gun, did not know he had threatened suicide. They wish they would have had the opportunity that Jenny's mother had to help their son.

This is a ridiculous lawsuit. I fully agree that my tax dollars should be spent fighting it. Hey, if I could donate to fighting it, I would. This is ridiculous. I understand that the family is in turmoil. However, if someone is decided to kill someone, they are going to do it- regardless of time or piece of paper (restraining order). This was a true tragedy. I simply wish that they could accept it as such. No one conspired or wanted this young, beautiful couple dead. He made an awful decision that cheated the world from 2 young lives, but, HE made that decision, not Rock County or anyone else. Police are not pre-emptive. They can't anticipate WHO is going to kill whom. Domestic violence is far more common than people realize, and, threatening to kill self and others is a very common practice in DV. I don't believe Rock County had any belief that this case was different than the others. And, sorry, but, Jennifer putting the gun in her car instead of taking it to her family's house, throwing it in a river- anything? If she was that scared, her family should have come to get the gun- and her. Not Rock County's fault. My prayers to the grieving families.

Do any of you know her mother personally? Maybe she did try to get her out of there. You don't know what happened. In my opinion, the county and the PD did drop the ball and I'm willing to bet that they will settle. There are just so many different contributing factors into these deaths.

Sad that people are thinking dollar signs. That's what it boils down to.
The family can't look themselves in the mirror because they messed up and they are now trying to focus blame on someone else. Pathetic.

We unfortunately live in a society that believes there is no such thing any more as personal responsibility. Everybody wants smaller government, but when the government (the county, in this case) fails to save someone from themselves, everybody is up in arms that somebody else should've done something to prevent this. Laws are set up for police, crisis intervention, etc. to step in when somebody requests help. Unfortunately, nobody in this family ever asked for help for Shaun or Jenni. Jenni never said she felt Shaun would hurt her. Nobody is really to blame here other than Shaun. I feel terrible for what these families are going through, but suing the police and the county is not the answer to their pain. If suits like this are allowed to happen continually, we'll start to see less police involvement in domestic disputes. Many police officers I know already don't like responding to domestics because of this issue. Their damned if they do because they stepped in too soon, damned if they don't because somebody gets hurt. It's a lose, lose situation for authorities because no matter what they do, even if they follow the letter of the law, somebody always ends up unhappy with what takes place.

Always easy just to blame someone else. Just like when we were young children. It's not my fault, tommy did it. Accountability doesn't exist in todays society. It's simply wrong.

I think Jennifers mom needs a suite filed against her - where is her responsibility in this? If any of my daughters were in any kind of situation even resembling this, just like SwissChick's parents - you can bet I would haul their A** out of there - and to be honest, me and Shaun would have had our own little exchange - which by the way, I would take FULL resposibilty for - with NO REGRETS!!

tomtom- absolutely correct! It's the something for nothing mentality. People can't hold themselves personally accountable to anything anymore in today's world. But, when it comes to money, that's a different story! Anytime money is the focus regarding anything, it's never going to have a happy ending. Whether people believe it or not, this is the absolute truth: Focus on God and get things right with him, the last thing you'll need to focus on is money.

I agree with the current posts. However tragic the loss of both of these young people, suing isn't going to solve anything. First we don't want the government running our lives, then we do want the government running our lives, then when the government doesn't protect us, then we sue. Make up your mind. Can the family sue the family for not taking care when he was released to thier care? I am not sure what this lawsuit will solve.....

Everyone is sue happy these days. No one wants to take responsiblity for themselves. The lawyer who takes the case stands to win the most!!! You would think lawyers would uphold the law but instead the $$ drives them to take these stupid law suits!!
The family needs to take responsibility here. Maybe they should be charged for all the police runs to the house, when the family did nothing to help the problem.

Queenb: it was actually his sister he was released to. And, how can you say "they should have held him"...the law/p&p at the time prohibited them from doing more than they did.

Dogs: I agree the system needs to be revamped. However, two very strong points remain: 1) this lawsuit IS frivilous and suing the County is not going to bring forth the changes needed and 2) Who can save or help us if we are not willing to help or save ourselves? Sure Shaun had issues but who wouldn't if their spouse was "running around" on them!!? Her family knew he was a ticking time bomb and still did nothing.... (You're concerned enough over texts to call 911 but you're not concerned enough to get your daughter out of "there" after your son-in-law is taken out at gunpoint??!! Umm...ok!)

Seems to me that Jenni's mom/family should be listed as co-defendants in their own lawsuit to place blame/a price tag on a life.

DO NOT settle this lawsuit!! I'd rather spend 5 mil in legal fees than give this family a dime!! I feel horrible for BOTH families and their losses. But, Jenni's actions perhaps led to Shaun's reaction and her family's inaction certainly had just as much of a damning effect. Don't blame the city, county or state because you are and continue to be in denial!!!

it does not matter who is responsible for what once this thing takes on a life of its own in our "sue now and ask me later what really happened" society. there will always be a lawyer at the bottom of a steaming heap like this one.

916WI - Exactly!!
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Sannio - You bet! Me, too!
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Saddened - I'm with you on that one. Blame, blame, blame.
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People need to start taking responsibility for their actions or lack of actions. If that had been me, my parents would've hauled a** to get me out of that house in no time flat. Her mother instead just sat back and did nothing. Wow.

+1 Sannio......I would rather spend more of our tax dollars fighting this than giving these people a dime. It is unfortunate that if they were to lose this case that the family wouldn't be responsible for picking up the legal expenses that the state incurs defending themselves......

What I don't understand is why the mother of Jennifer feels that she can blame anyone besides herself. She is the only one that knew everything that was going on. She knew her daughter had left Shaun, she knew that Shaun was upset and distraught and was threatening suicide. She knew that Shaun was taken to Crisis but chose not to let any of his family know. She knew Shaun had a gun. She knew her daughter was in the house with Shaun all day Sunday. She knew Shaun left the house Sunday night with the gun in the car (right where Jennifer had left it) and she did NOTHING. How can she blame anyone but herself? She didn't go help her own daughter. How can she expect people who don't know them to help when she chose not to. How does she feel she is entitled to money for the death of her daughter that she chose not to help. They might both still be alive if she had chosen to help.

County dropped the ball???? How about the family dropped the ball! If the family would have taken responsibility that guy would be in the nut house right now. Was he not released to their care at one point?

If you read the whole story, you will understand that the county dropped the ball when they had the opportunity to keep this from happening. I am not for frivolous law suits but this one has merit and should result in a thorough house cleaning and revamping of how our county handles crisis intervention.

As a taxpayer I support my tax dollars going to fight this lawsuit rather than settling.

I'm surprised the family isn't suing the company that produced the gun, the manufacturer of the car that the guy used to drive to the house and Ozzy Osbourne for making the "devil's music".......The responsibility lies totally with the guy that pulled the trigger. The family is simply out for a pay day.......I wonder how many millions it will take to make them feel better about losing their family member?