On January 8, 2024, Alfred Burton Burt Carnes, 74, a retired district judge, and his wife Susan H. Carnes, 74, were shot and killed in their Georgetown, Texas home. Their son, 45-year-old Seth Bryan Carnes, was arrested at the scene after deputies responded to a 911 call from his 19-year-old daughter reporting that her father had shot her grandparents.

Deputies found Alfred Carnes on the living room floor and Susan Carnes in an upstairs bedroom, each with injuries consistent with shotgun wounds. Seth Carnes was exiting the home and reportedly confessed to deputies that he had just shot and killed his parents, later admitting to using a Remington 870 kept near his nightstand. He was charged with capital murder, held without bond, and pleaded not guilty; as of May 2024 no plea deal had been offered and a tentative trial date was set for November 4, 2024.

The shootings reportedly followed an argument after Seth refused to take a sleeping pill his mother attempted to give him; his cited remark about his father was that he had been looking for something and decided to finish the job. The deaths have deeply affected the Georgetown community, particularly because of Alfred Carnes’ long judicial career. Does anyone have information about the family or events leading up to January 8, 2024?