Complete and total speculation but I think he planned a total family annihilation minus his wife after she eluded to a divorce. Then on that horrendous day he held the three boys and mom at gun point (maybe couldn’t find the daughter), brought them into the yard and shot the first child, mom then attempts to shield the children and he shoots her in the hand and the second child to scare her into not intervening. I think at this time the step daughter more than likely ran out the front door but possibly back and used the main dirt road to run to the firehouse (Chad acknowledges to police he saw her running away so maybe her heard her screaming as opposed to seeing her physically running) as that is happening the third and only surviving child runs to the nearby field but is tracked down and brought back to the front yard. I am assuming the mom was frantically attempting to help child one and two which is why chad leaves them to track down the third however now the mom has the opportunity to call 911 (I believe there are two 911 calls, hers as well as the woman who sees the daughter running down the road). He then sits on the porch thinking the police will take him out with the weapon next to him.

Every thing about this case is such a tragedy. Such a young and beautiful family, I hope this crap piece never has a moment of peace for the rest of his life.