Officials say a 12-year-old boy, a 66-year-old man and a 62-year-old woman were killed before the suspected gunman died by suicide.
TERRELL, Texas — Police on Monday released the names of three people shot to death inside a home on Christmas Eve and identified the suspected gunman, who they say turned the weapon on himself. Officers found the four dead after a welfare check around 5:30 p.m. in the 200 block of Rash Lane.
Authorities said the case is being investigated as a triple murder-suicide. The victims were identified as Philip Dale Humphrey, 66, of Kaufman; Sherry Lynn Bostick, 62, of Terrell; and a 12-year-old boy from Wills Point whose name was withheld at his family’s request. Police identified the suspected shooter as Casey Dale Humphrey, 38, of Forney. Investigators have not publicly released a motive or detailed the relationships among those involved. Detectives are processing evidence and interviewing relatives and neighbors as the community absorbs the loss during the holiday week.
Officers were dispatched for a welfare check on Dec. 24 after relatives could not reach family members, according to police. Responding officers entered the residence and located four people with gunshot wounds. All were pronounced dead at the scene. Police said initial findings indicate the 38-year-old suspect fatally shot the man, the woman and the child before dying of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. “This incident remains an active and ongoing investigation,” the department said in a written statement, adding that no threat to the broader public has been identified. The home sits on a short, residential stretch of Rash Lane about 30 miles east of Dallas.
Officials released the victims’ names on Dec. 29, along with the suspect’s identity and ages. The police statement did not describe the firearm used, how many shots were fired, or where inside the house each person was found. Investigators have not specified familial ties, though two people on the scene shared a last name. Neighbors told reporters the street was blocked by cruisers into the evening as detectives photographed the scene and collected shell casings. Police have not said whether any prior calls for service were recorded at the address, and no protective orders linked to the household have been announced. Autopsies are being conducted through the county medical examiner.
The Christmas Eve timing drew regional attention because the case marked one of the deadliest single-household incidents this year in Kaufman County. Terrell police first confirmed four deaths on Dec. 26 and later clarified the murder-suicide finding as interviews and forensic work advanced. The address—on the 200 block—had no public history of major incidents, neighbors said, describing the block as quiet with a mix of longtime residents and renters. The department emphasized that early details could change as evidence returns from the lab and as detectives establish a more complete timeline for the hours leading up to the welfare check.
Police said additional updates will follow when next of kin notifications and autopsy results are complete. No charges will be filed because the suspect also died. Detectives are reviewing phones and digital records, canvassing nearby homes for security video, and awaiting ballistics reports. The department asked anyone with information to contact investigators and said they plan to release a brief summary of findings once lab work and interviews are finished. Funeral arrangements for the adult victims were pending Monday, and the child’s name remains withheld at the family’s request.
On Rash Lane Monday afternoon, a few residents left small bouquets near the mailbox while work trucks rumbled by. “It’s heartbreaking, especially at Christmas,” said neighbor Mark Stevens, who has lived nearby for eight years. Another neighbor, who declined to give her name, said she saw patrol cars and crime-scene tape as darkness fell on Christmas Eve. “The whole street went quiet,” she said. A city spokesperson said counselors have been offered to first responders who handled the call.
As of Monday evening, police said the scene had been cleared and evidence booked while lab work and interviews continue this week. Officials said a fuller update could come after preliminary autopsy findings are returned, expected in the coming days.
Author note: Last updated December 30, 2025.