UPDATED AT 12:45 p.m. June 22, by the Charles County Sheriff’s Office

Charles County sheriff’s detectives are continuing their investigation into a suicide that occurred on Dove Tree Court in Indian Head on June 19. 

In this case, a 32-year-old man shot and killed himself in an upstairs bedroom of his house; his 3-month-old son, James Robert Barker, was found unconscious nearby.

The baby was transported to a hospital where he died on June 21. 

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Washington, D.C. will perform an autopsy to determine the manner and cause of the infant’s death. The investigation is continuing. Anyone with additional information is asked to call Det. J. Austin at (301) 609-6504.

UPDATED AT 8:15 p.m. by the Charles County Sheriff’s Office

INDIAN HEAD, MD – On June 19 at 3:05 p.m., a witness called 911 after being alerted that their neighbor shot himself inside his house on Dove Tree Court in Indian Head and the man’s three-month-old son was not breathing.

Prior to emergency personnel arriving, neighbors rushed inside and found the baby unconscious; they initiated CPR until paramedics arrived.

Officers arrived and found an adult male with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead on the scene. Officers recovered a gun near the man.

The baby was transported to Charles Regional Medical Center in critical condition. There were no obvious signs of trauma to the baby and at this point, it is not clear what caused the baby to lose consciousness.

Detectives assigned to the Criminal Investigations Division are investigating. Anyone with additional information is asked to call the Charles County Sheriff’s Office at (301) 932-2222.

Charles County Crime Solvers offers rewards of up to $1,000 for information that leads to the arrest or indictment of a person responsible for a crime in Charles County. Anyone with information about an unsolved crime or the location of a fugitive may contact Charles County Crime Solvers by calling 1-866-411-TIPS.

ORIGINAL REPORT

Indian Head, MD – Charles County authorities are investigating an apparent suicide at a residence in Indian Head. Around 3 p.m. Friday afternoon, June 19 a woman returned to her home on Dove Tree Court and found her husband dead from a gunshot wound and her 3-month-old son unconscious.

According to Charles County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Diane Richardson, the baby was transported to Charles Regional Medical Center in critical condition. She said police found no signs of trauma on the baby.

Richardson stated the unidentified man’s wound appears to have been self-inflicted.
Investigators are still at the scene and more information will be released later.