Madison police are investigating a tragedy: a Middleton man shot and killed his 12 year old son Tuesday and then turned the gun on himself. He remains in extremely critical condition and is unable to give any information to police. There's a lot of speculation about why 36 year old Ryan Dutter did what he did. Police spokesman Joel DeSpain says police have recovered the weapon Dutter used, and are looking for additional evidence at his home. Media accounts have reported that Dutter was a mortgage broker who had declared bankruptcy. Twelve year old Kyle Dutter was developmentally disabled. Dutter, who was divorced, had custody of him during the week.
DeSpain can't say if evidence includes a note. Police are looking into whether it was Dutter himself who made the anonymous check welfare call to 911. DeSpain said it's a troubling case, particularly for the officers who arrived to find Kyle Dutter mortally wounded. The elder Dutter committed the shootings in his jeep, which was parked near a city park on Madison's west side. The incident sent residents in the otherwise quiet neighborhood into a state of anxiety. "When you drive buy and see yellow tape and police vehicles, newscasters and a crowd, right in front of the park that I take my son to, it's very disturbing," said one woman.
A prominent picture from the shooting scene: a plastic orange pumpkin bucket on the dash. DeSpain, who also lives in the neighborhood, said he knew that the shooting was not drug-related when he saw that.
4:15 PM UDATE : Dane County Coronor John Stanley says 36 year-old Ryan Dutter has died.