Airman in murder-suicide ‘despondent’ over pending divorce

Clinton Field, a 29-year-old airman stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington, has been identified as the shooter who killed his wife and two small children early Tuesday morning before turning the gun on himself.

Before commiting suicide at a house in the Frederickson area, just east of the base, Field called 911 at 12:48 a.m. Tuesday and said he had killed his 33-year-old wife, 4-year-old daughter and 2-year-old son, the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department said Tuesday in a news release on its Facebook page.

“The caller went on to say he was armed and was going to kill himself, then he hung up the phone,” the release stated. “Dispatchers made multiple attempts to call the man back but their calls went unanswered.

The victims were identified as Samantha Field and the couple’s children, Ava and Ashen, according to the county medical examiner’s office.

On his Facebook page, Field identifies himself as an Air Force administrator from Titusville, Florida. He had been stationed at Lewis-McChord for about a year, according to the sheriff’s department.

The Pierce County Sheriff's Department identified Clinton Field as the airman who killed his wife, Samantha, and their children, Ava and Ashen, before killing himself. (Via Facebook)

The sheriff’s department said early information from military investigators suggested the suspect had recently been despondent over a pending divorce and may have been treated at some point for depression-related issues.

The sheriff’s department had never been called to the house, and had no indication of a history of domestic violence, according to its Facebook page.

After the 911 call, dispatchers determined that it came from a residence in the 5700 block of East 209th Street.

“A large number of deputies responded to the residence and made multiple announcements over a PA system to try to make contact with the suspect,” the release stated. “The PCSD SWAT team also responded to the scene and made a tactical entry to the residence. Inside the home they located the bodies of the male suspect, his wife and their two young children. All of the victims were found in their beds and appear to have been killed while they were sleeping.”

Information from the Associated Press was included in this report.