Mother, 23, kills her two-year-old son before committing suicide by driving car into bridge after ex-husband fails to show up for visitation
Kelli Sly was being threatened with eviction from her apartment
Told her mom she couldn't cope and that she felt like killing herself
Police found Gavin's body at her apartment after she was discovered dead in her car
It is not yet known how Gavin died, as police wait for autopsy reports
A young mother went to tragic desperate lengths to rid herself of the frustration of solo child-care, killing first her son, then herself.
Kelli Sly, 23, of Indianola, was angry with her ex-husband for failing to show up for visitation, police said, and wanted more help looking after her son, Gavin.
She killed the toddler at their First Avenue apartment, before driving her car into a bridge support underneath the Iowa Highway 5 bypass along Iowa Highway 28.
Friends and family said she was suffering from depression and often appeared distraught. In the past she had been a victim of domestic abuse and was being threatened with eviction from her apartment.
But during a police check-up the day before her death she told offers she was not suicidal, just mad at her estranged husband, Tim, who had failed to pick up Gavin for visitation.
Officers went to her apartment after Tim contacted them saying he was worried she might hurt herself, having made previous attempts to do so.
They left after Sly told them she was fine, but by 8.30 the next morning both Sly and Gavin were dead in what police believe was a tragic murder-suicide.
Her car was found with an empty child seat in it so officers went to her apartment, concerned for the child's welfare. There they found Gavin’s slaughtered body.
Sgt. Brian Sher said evidence at the apartment, which was ‘very neat and organized,’ led police to believe that she had killed her son.
Distraught: Sly's mother, Sherri Sinclair, said her daughter was suffering from depression
‘There was an envelope left and it had several items in it,’ he said. ‘There was no suicide letter.’
Sly’s mother, Sherri Sinclair of Waukee, told KCCI-TV Sunday that her daughter had been struggling with depression, but that she never thought it would end up this way.
She added: 'It's still a shock, it's hard to understand what went wrong.
'She told me she was tired of feeling this way and she just didn't think things were going to get better. She told me she felt like killing herself.
'I think she felt like things were never going to get better. She was a very angry and depressed, but also a very loving mother. I know she loved me too, but it was just hard for her to cope.'
In August 2011 Sly had sought a protective order for relief from domestic abuse, according to court records.
After a month she requested to have the order lifted but changed her mind five days later. On Friday she made a second request.
Sly and her husband were allowed to be in electronic contact to discuss Gavin and had not filed for divorce.
The 23-year-old Waukee High School graduate worked at Casey’s convenience store before her death.
A colleague, 18-year-old Melinda Talbott said she had spoken with Sly a couple of days ago and said she seemed distraught, but added that was not unusual.
The young mom had found out Friday that she was being evicted from her Warren County Community Housing Agency apartment in a week, Talbott said.
Neighbour Dianna Nardini said she saw Sly, her husband and Gavin on Saturday and that Sly had appeared distant and preoccupied.
‘I’m shocked, I really am, because she was a really, really good mother,’ she added.
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RIP sweet boy!
