Victims In Tennessee Killing Spree Identified As Relatives Of Killer, Michael Cummins

Tennessee authorities over the weekend identified the bodies of seven people killed in two homes.

Police were called to the first home, located between the towns of Westmoreland and Fairfield, after four bodies were discovered by a family member. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) began searching the area discovering a fifth victim at a nearby home. The area is located just south of the Kentucky border and about 50 miles northeast of Nashville.

Two more bodies were then discovered Sunday at the first location, along with an eighth victim that was still alive and rushed to a hospital.

The TBI announced it had begun a search for Michael Cummins, 25, who was the primary suspect in the murders. The manhunt ended Saturday when Cummins was spotted by a creek bed one mile from the crime scenes by a TBI plane.

According to police reports, Cummins exited the creek bed with multiple weapons, escalating the standoff. One officer fired and wounded Cummins, allowing him to be taken into custody. Cummins was later taken to a hospital.

No there were reports of other injuries or fatalities.

The seven victims were identified as Cummins’ parents David Carl and Clara Jane Cummins, as well as his uncle Charles Edward Hosale. Other victims included Rachel Dawn McGlothlin-Pee, McGlothlin-Pee's mother Marsha Elizabeth Nuckols, McGlothlin-Pee's 12-year-old daughter Sapphire and Shirley Fehrle. It is unknown what relation Fehrle or the McGlothlin-Pees had to Cummins.

During a press conference, Sumner County Sheriff Sonny Weatherford described the killing as "one of the worst things I've ever been involved with in Sumner County."

The Tennessean noted Cummins' criminal record, which included a guilty plea to aggravated assault and attempted arson in 2018 for an incident from 2017 when he threatened a neighbor and tried to burn down their home. He had been sentenced to probation under the condition he receives a mental health evaluation.

Cummins also has a past history of violence against his own family. He had been charged with attempted assault in 2013 for throwing objects at his aunt’s home and damaging the home. He also allegedly assaulted his grandmother for trying to stop him when she caught Cummins stealing from his mother’s purse.