On February 16, 1982, a mass shooting at a farmhouse in Garfield Township near Farwell, Michigan, left seven people dead in what became known as the Rock Road massacre. Among the victims was seven-year-old Tom Gaffney. Also killed were Tom’s mother Helen Gaffney, his sisters Angela and Amy, and three other family members: Garnetta Haggart and her parents George and Vaudrey Post. Helen’s 15-month-old daughter Amanda was found alive at the scene, reportedly shielded by her mother’s body.

The shooter was identified as 32-year-old livestock auctioneer Robert Lee Haggart. The killings were linked to his pending divorce from Garnetta Haggart. Haggart fled the state after the attack but was arrested in Jasper, Tennessee, on February 18, 1982, and returned to Michigan to face charges.

At trial in Midland County, the jury convicted Haggart of first-degree murder in six deaths and of second-degree murder in Tom Gaffney’s death, reflecting doubts the jury had about intent in the child’s killing; he was also convicted of attempted murder in Amanda’s case. Haggart received seven life sentences plus 32 years. Does anyone have further information about Tom or the Gaffney family that could help preserve their story?