A 37-year-old Semmes mother with a history of psychiatric issues drowned her two young children before hanging herself on Thursday, Mobile County Sheriff Paul Burch said during a Friday press conference.
Burch said the woman’s estranged husband and father of the children was not involved.
Nancy M. Johnson and her two children — 2-year-old Jacob Johnson and 5-year-old Mia Johnson — were found dead inside their Evergreen Court home in Semmes.
An autopsy confirmed the causes of death. Mia Johnson also had lacerations to her throat as a contributing factor, Burch said.
Burch said the children were found on a sectional sofa in the living room, each covered with a blanket, while Nancy Johnson was found in a master closet where she had used a silk scarf or belt to hang herself.
“We have learned there were clearly some psychiatric issues with the mother,” Burch said. “We’re learning more about that as the hours go by. There are court documents which make reference to her mental condition.”
Nancy Johnson and her estranged husband were in the midst of a divorce, court records show, with him filing in Mobile County Court in August. As part of that case, his attorney had issued a subpoena for Nancy Johnson’s medical records from USA Health Psychiatry.
On Sept. 20, Mobile County Judge Walter Honeycutt granted his motion for access to Nancy Johnson’s psychiatric records, although it’s unclear whether he and/or his attorney had yet seen those records.
Burch said it’s possible the divorce and subsequent custody battle played a role in Nancy Johnson’s mental state, but emphasized the husband is not a suspect in the deaths of his wife or children. It was the father who found the bodies Thursday, just a day after he had arrived back in Semmes from Utah.
“He is not a suspect,” Burch said. “He has been cooperative and investigators have been able to corroborate all of his statements. It’s just tragic and unfortunately — and I hope it stops — there were a lot of social media comments about him being responsible, about him being the one who did it.
“Well, he didn’t.”
Nancy Johnson had left clothing, a small amount of cash and a note with some neighbors on Wednesday — the same day the father arrived back in Semmes, Burch said.
The note said “if anything happened to her, it was probably (the estranged husband),” the sheriff said.
Her actions led to speculation she was trying to set up her estranged husband.
“I can’t speak to someone’s mind set when they are dead and we can’t talk to them,” Burch said, “but I will say she had some other self-inflicted injuries on her wrists and neck and she did make comments to the neighbors if something happened to her, it was probably him.”
Nancy Johnson had been the first to file for divorce, doing so in June, but by June 26, the petition was dismissed, with both Johnsons notifying the court they were reconciled and agreed to undergo marriage counseling.
On Aug. 7, two days before her husband filed for divorce, Nancy Johnson was granted a protective order from a court in Provo, Utah. About six weeks later, he was arrested by Semmes police for violating the protective order. He was released on $1,000 bond.
Burch also said Friday he has concerns surrounding why the children weren’t taken into protective custody given Nancy Johnson’s mental instability.
“Somebody in the system dropped the ball,” Burch said “Clearly, that should have happened. I’m more concerned with the timing of when it should have happened.”
Burch said he was awaiting additional documentation to make a determination what action, if any, his department might take.
“I’m not necessarily looking at it from a criminal standpoint,” he said, “but I’m damn sure looking at it to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, reach out to the 24–hour National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255; contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741; or chat with someone online at suicidepreventionlifeline.org. The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is available 24 hours.
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