The boy is in custody after being accused of shooting and killing former interim Minden Mayor Joe Cornelius Sr., 82, and his daughter, 31-year-old Keisha Miles.

An 11-year-old boy has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder after being accused of shooting a former Louisiana city mayor and his adult daughter to death, police said.

Minden Police Chief Jared McIver announced the arrest of the boy during a news conference on Tuesday and confirmed the deaths of Joe Cornelius Sr., 82, and his daughter, 31-year-old Keisha Miles.

“I just want to start out by giving our condolences to the family,” McIver said. “This is a very tough issue to be dealing with and the city mourns with you, as well. The city is also in shock.”

Minden police officers got a 911 call about the shooting on Sunday around 6:30 a.m., according to McIver. The caller, who the chief said was a family member, told the operator that two people were dead inside of a home.

Cornelius and Miles were found in the home dead from multiple gunshot wounds, the chief said. Investigators found two guns that were hidden on the property that matched the empty shell casings found at the scene of the shooting, he added.

11-year-old boy confesses to the murders: Police chief

Detectives soon interviewed the 11-year-old boy who was at the scene when officers responded, McIver said. After the boy gave authorities a story that “didn’t add up,” he later confessed to committing the shootings, according to the chief.

The boy’s relationship with Cornelius and Miles is unclear, and while police did not specify, McIver said he is their family member.

“A lot of questions have arose about what is the why behind this. We do not know that yet,” according to the chief. “We are still piecing the puzzle pieces together right now.”

McIver also did not release what guns were used to commit the shootings.

“When it comes to a crime like this, if a person wants to do harm to someone it doesn’t matter the weapon,” he said. “They’re going to find something to use. In this case, firearms were used.”

The 11-year-old remains in custody with a $500,000 bond, according to the chief.

‘This is a somber day for our community’

Joe Cornelius Sr. previously served as a longtime city council and interim mayor of Minden, Louisiana, current Minden Mayor Nick Cox said during the news conference.

“This is a somber day for our community as we face this tragedy that has deeply affected us all, our hearts and prayers are with the Cornelius family and their friends during this unimaginable time,” Cox said. “Joe Cornelius was more than just a public servant, he was a committed leader who dedicated many years to the service of the city of Minden.”

McIver said Cornelius has “been around” and everybody knew him, which is why his death “hurts the most.”

“When you know somebody that’s been in the community that long, (and) that’s reached so many people there, there’s a sorrow,” the chief said.

The campaign of Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris has waded into Louisiana’s reproductive health debate, criticizing Republican Donald Trump for restrictive policies that states have approved since the U.S. Supreme Court reversed its stance on legal abortion in 2022.

“Let’s be clear: Donald Trump is the reason Louisiana women who are suffering from miscarriages or bleeding out after birth can no longer receive the critical care they would have received before Trump overturned Roe,” Harris-Walz spokeswoman Sarafina Chitika said in a statement to the Illuminator.

“Because of Trump, doctors are scrambling to find solutions to save their patients and are left at the whims of politicians who think they know better,” she added. “Trump is proud of what he’s done. He brags about it. And if he wins, he will threaten to bring the crisis he created for Louisiana women to all 50 states.”

Chitika’s comments came after  the Illuminator reported earlier Tuesday that Louisiana hospitals are preparing to remove misoprostol from their obstetric hemorrhage carts now that the medicine has been reclassified as a controlled dangerous substance. The new law goes into effect on Oct. 1, and health care providers are scrambling to come up with new protocols for a medication they have relied upon to save women with life-threatening hemorrhages after delivery.

Misoprostol is prescribed for a number of medical reasons, one of which is to prevent and treat postpartum hemorrhaging. A new Louisiana law reclassifying the medicine as a Schedule IV drug has introduced extra barriers for access because controlled substances have different storage and prescription requirements. 

The drug, along with mifepristone, is being targeted because it is also used for abortion. Gov. Jeff Landry signed the law in May, despite more than 200 doctors sending him a letter of concern that the law could have unintended medical consequences.

Doctors grapple with how to save women’s lives amid ‘confusion and angst’ over new Louisiana law

Misoprostol will still be available in Louisiana hospitals, but it won’t be able to be easily accessible on the rolling carts and in-room kits that OB-GYNs typically use if a patient starts bleeding profusely after childbirth. This could mean a delay in care. Some hospitals have already started preemptively removing the medication from their obstetric carts.

“We’re trying to fix something that is not broken and that is absolutely safe,” said Dr. Stacey Holman, division director for Touro Infirmary’s maternal child services. “It’s an unnecessary barrier and really critical to the regular everyday care that we provide to our patients.”

In August, 50 Louisiana doctors signed a letter requesting the Louisiana Department of Health and Surgeon General Ralph Abraham provide guidance on the use of misoprostol in the inpatient setting. “This is a nationally recognized guideline to emergently treat life-threatening postpartum hemorrhage and it is critical that providers are aware and have access to medication without delay,” the doctors wrote.

Louisiana has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the country, and Black women are disproportionately affected. Seventy-five percent of the state’s rural hospitals don’t have maternity care. The Illuminator spoke with a physician who treats pregnant women at a rural hospital in northwestern Louisiana who was shocked to hear misoprostol was being reclassified as a controlled dangerous substance.

“What? That’s terrifying,” the doctor said. “Take it off the carts? That’s death. That’s a matter of life or death.”

The physician said she uses misoprostol as one of the first drugs to treat hemorrhages because it is easily accessible, doesn’t require syringes or IV access, and has fewer side effects for women with high risk pregnancies.

Other politicians and reproductive health activists have weighed in since the Illuminator published its report on Louisiana’s new law.

Starting 10/1, mifepristone and misoprostol – two drugs used for medication abortion – will become controlled, dangerous substances in Louisiana.

This political move will have dangerous consequences for pregnancy care.

H/t @lorenaoneil & @IlluminatorLAhttps://t.co/kwEvwtc3tq

— Cecile Richards (@CecileRichards) September 3, 2024

Misoprostol can be a *lifesaving* medication. Women are at risk of emergency hysterectomies and even death if it’s not administered promptly.

Trump’s Supreme Court overturned Roe, and now look where we are.

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Miso isn’t dangerous — Republicans’ stance on abortion is. https://t.co/L3HiOJ1fY4

— Senator Tina Smith (@SenTinaSmith) September 3, 2024

Restricting a lifesaving drug isn’t just extreme, it’s preventing doctors from doing their job.

Women deserve better. Doctors deserve better. Americans deserve better.

We can’t let such dangerous measures become the norm. https://t.co/lrScSyUpwU

— Rep. Diana DeGette (@RepDianaDeGette) September 3, 2024

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MAGA abortion bans put all pregnant women in danger. One in three American women have had their reproductive freedom stripped away by Trump’s friends, and this is the future that #Project2025 will bring to every state. We won’t go back. https://t.co/R17se0WIqD

— Michigan Democrats (@MichiganDems) September 3, 2024

WEST MONROE, La. (KNOE) – Louisiana Life magazine recognized two West Monroe businesses in their “La Nouvelle Louisine” feature.

West Monroe Sports and Events was named the Best Recreational Spot, while Courtyard on Cotton was named a runner-up for Best Outdoor Space.

Discover Monroe-West Monroe Vice President of Marketing & Communications Sheila Snow said that this honor highlights the community’s effort to make West Monroe a desirable destination.

“We are lucky to have such incredible community partners and organizations in Monroe-West Monroe who work each day to make our destination a great place to visit. We are honored to help shine a light on the work they are doing and the spaces they are creating.”

Although West Monroe Sports and Events and Courtyard on Cotton are fairly new locations, they have made quite an impact in the community.

“From art exhibitions, events and classes to popup collaborations – like weekend brunches, book swaps and sales or live music―Courtyard on Cotton is a magical kind of greenspace to experience where all can gather and grow,” said Rebekah Lawrence, Courtyard on Cotton founder and gallerist.

“We are so honored to have been chosen to be featured in Louisiana Life magazine as the best recreational spot in Louisiana. None of this would have been possible without Mayor Staci Mitchell and the City of West Monroe’s vision years ago. We look forward to our state-of-the-art facility being the home to numerous sporting, and community events for years to come,” said Jamie Johnson, General Manager of West Monroe Sports & Events.

Each year Louisiana Life magazine receives nominations from across the state to determine where the most noteworthy places are in the state.

To read the full article, click here.

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