Lenexa man charged for killing wife, son during police standoff

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A man has been charged with first-degree murder after investigators say he killed his wife and son Friday night following a standoff with police in Lenexa, Kansas.

According to the Johnson County District Attorney's Office, 53-year-old Todd Michael Donovan has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder after he allegedly shot and killed his wife, 52-year-old Sheila Donovan, and son, 22-year-old Tyler Donovan, on Friday, Nov. 1.

Donovan is also facing one count of cruelty to animals after investigators say he shot and killed his neighbor's dog on the same night.

Initial reports from Lenexa police said that at about 8:20 p.m. on the night of the shooting, officers were dispatched to a home near Hallet Street and Mullen Road on reports of sounds of gunfire.

Police said that, as officers arrived at the scene, multiple gunshots were heard coming from the home.

Officers called the individual suspected of firing the gun, allegedly Todd, and learned that he was still inside the home. Police attempted to get him to exit the residence peacefully, however, he refused the officer's request.

The Lenexa Tactical Team and crisis negotiators responded to the scene and began their barricade operations. Police said negotiators allegedly spoke with Todd for nearly two hours before he hung up, leading the tactical team to enter the home and place him in custody.

However, Todd was believed to have overdosed, leading emergency responders to take him to a hospital for treatment.

After Todd was out of the home, officers found the bodies of two victims, a man and a woman now known to be Sheila and Tyler Donovan, who had been shot.

Police also learned that a neighbor's dog had been shot and killed at the same time they responded to the initial call.

"(Donovan) has since been charged by the Johnson County District Attorney's office with two counts of first-degree murder," said Officer Danny Chavez with Lenexa Police.

"Dealing with homicides is not something we have to do very often. That's always very unfortunate. An armed disturbance always gets your attention. But in this case, officers were still within a couple of blocks when they heard gunfire. As far as the why, that's something we're looking into right now. Nothing at this point that stands out as an obvious reason for what happened inside."

FOX4 spoke with neighbors on Saturday who said they heard the shots ring out.

"We were home yesterday and probably 9:00 at night. My wife heard some gunshots. So did the neighbors," said Chris Zien.

"They were trying to convince the guy to come out saying, you know, please come out. We don't want anyone hurt. And then basically there were three drones up and up and there, the whole neighborhood blocked off. So even people that were trying to get into their houses, they wouldn't let them in."

Zien went on to explain that this is out of the norm for the area.

"This is a quiet neighborhood. This is not, we don't have this around here," he continued

"I've seen more squad cars on the street than the whole time I've been living here. Just today, everyone kind of knows. Everyone kind of watches out for everybody. So it's kind of it's really shocking to have this happen."

Zien also said that the incident was shocking for the community, but he was rather unfamiliar with the family.

"I didn't know this family very well at all. They would be sitting out to say, hey, we walk, you take walks and stuff like that, and we'd say hi to him. But other than that, I really don't know much about, about the couple," he explained.

"Everyone’s fine. I mean, you know, it's something that we're all kind of in shock. You move on. There's nothing else you can do."

The case is currently under investigation with Lenexa detectives and members of the Johnson County Crime Lab.

Todd Donovan is being held on a $2 million bond.

This is a developing story. The Johnson County District Attorney's Office says that Todd should be presumed innocent until proven guilty. Stay tuned at FOX4 News for the latest updates and information.