NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans Police Department has arrested the father of three children who died in a house fire in the Plum Orchard neighborhood of New Orleans East overnight.
29-year-old Joseph Washington is accused of setting the home on fire. He was initially booked on three counts of second-degree murder, three counts of cruelty to a juvenile and one count of aggravated arson. The murder counts were raised to first-degree Thursday.
According to the NOPD, Washington was taken into custody on the I-610 Eastbound at the Elysian Fields exit when the vehicle he was in stopped and he attempted to flee by jumping off the overpass. He was taken to the hospital.
Family, friends and neighbors were in shock following the tragic death of three children.
"Our world is turned upside down because they were nothing but angels," said Angela Palmer-Brown, step-grandmother to the 3- and 8-year-old boys and 5-year-old girl.
The New Orleans Police Department is currently investigating the incident as a triple homicide.
"I also want to assure you and the public that NOPD is actively investigating this incident. We are following up on all information available to us and we will ensure you that the person responsible will be held accountable." Interim NOPD Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick
According to investigators, the mother of the three children called 911 five minutes before midnight stating that their father intended to burn the house down. Shortly afterward, another call came in about a house fire at that location.
Troy McDonnell, identified in a NOLA.com story as the grandfather of the young children, said was publicly asking for his son to "turn himself in... If I catch him, I'm gonna kill him."
"There shouldn't be nothing in his brain to ignite that kind of behavior," said Pastor Robert Brown of nearby Ray Avenue Baptist Church. "Right now we have to concern ourselves with this mother that's in the hospital. She is devastated. She's going to need a lot of help. She's going to need a lot of care."
For Angela Palmer-Brown, the memory of her grandchildren will never be erased.
"I see them on that porch," she told WWL-TV reporter Leigha McNeil. "I see them. I'm going to always see them. It's tattooed in my brain."
The children's biological grandfather was also at the scene with Palmer-Brown after driving overnight from Florida. He said he had not heard from his son.
"I think this highlights that violence and homicide is a public health problem. As a mother and an ER doctor who has directly witnessed similar events, I think there is no more horrific tragedy than the intentional death of children," Jennifer Avegno, MD New Orleans Health Department.
The NOPD's Child Abuse unit is actively investigating. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call Child Abuse at (504) 658-5267 or Crimestoppers anonymously at (504) 822-1111.
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