Mother Shot Her 4 Kids 18 Times: Report

A Florida mother who killed her four children fired a revolver against the chest of at least two of them, shooting 18 rounds before turning the gun on herself, according to a medical examiner's report.

The self-inflicted gunshot wound on 33-year-old Tonya Thomas was among 19 identified on those killed early Tuesday morning, according to a Brevard County Medical Examiner's report obtained Sunday by Florida Today. The children were shot at a distance of more than two feet and at contact range.

``The shots were taken at contact range, where the muzzle of the gun was touching the body surface,'' District Medical Examiner Dr. Sajid Qaiser said.

The revolver was pressed directly on the chest of 15-year-old Jaxs Johnson when three shots were fired, the report said. He was found in the family room. The oldest child, 17-year-old Pebbles Johnson, was shot three times from more than two feet away. Jazzlyn Johnson was shot seven times and found in the entry hall of the home. The report said two shots were to the central chest with the gun in contact with the 13-year-old's body. The youngest child, 12-year-old Joel, was shot five times. Three of the shots were to the middle of his chest, with one hitting his heart, the report said. His body was also found in the hallway.

The shootings occurred in Port St. John, about 15 miles west of Cape Canaveral. The wounded children fled to a neighbor's house, trying to break in, but they returned when Thomas came outside and calmly called for them to return. She fired the fatal rounds at the children, smoked a cigarette and later killed herself, according to Brevard County deputies. Her body was found on a couch in the garage. Her oldest daughter, Pebbles, never made it back home. Her body was found in the front yard of a neighbor's house.

A child welfare investigator who spoke with Thomas in the weeks before the shootings said there were no signs that the children were in distress or felt unsafe although hundreds of documents released by state officials detailed a family tormented by episodes of violence over the years.