The JONES Children - 14, 10, 7 and 2 yo - Staten Island NYC NY

The deaths of four children in a house fire on Staten Island on July 22
have been ruled homicides, while their mother died by her own hand,
according to autopsy results released by the city medical examiner’s
office on Thursday. Investigators briefly thought the family members were victims of an
accidental fire. But when the bodies of three children were recovered
from the house, they discovered that their throats had been slashed. The
fourth child, a 2-year-old, died later at a hospital. His throat was
not cut. Toxicology reports show the mother, Leisa Jones, 30, died of smoke
inhalation, indicating she was alive when the blaze was set — evidence
that contradicted a theory that Ms. Jones’s 14-year-old son had carried
out the killings. “The investigative premise from the outset was that this was a
murder-suicide,” said Paul J. Browne, the Police Department’s chief
spokesman. “It was a question of whether the mother or the oldest child
was responsible. We had some preliminary findings from the medical
examiner early on and were waiting for a final determination which
apparently came today, which identified the mother as a suicide.”
The body of the 14-year-old, Romoy Raymond, known as C. J., had been
found in a back bedroom with a straight razor tucked under his arm.
Neighbors said they had previously seen him lighting fires outside his
home, and he had been suspended from school for assault — all fueling
the notion that he had committed the murders before killing himself.
But on Sunday, the investigation veered away from him. Among the factors
under consideration was a charred note found in the apartment, the
handwriting on which matched that of Ms. Jones. Only two words were
legible: “am sorry.” The deaths of C. J.’s siblings — Brittney, 10, Melonie, 7, and Jermaine
Sinclair, 2 — were ruled homicides last week, and the announcement on
Thursday added C. J. as a homicide victim. Ellen Borakove,
a spokeswoman for the medical examiner’s office, said
the three older children all died from the cuts to their throats. Smoke
inhalation was not listed as a factor. Jermaine died of smoke inhalation and burns.
A fire lieutenant had rushed in to save Jermaine, but
he was pronounced dead at a local hospital a short while later.
Fire Department officials, who quickly determined the 4 a.m. fire was intentionally set,
are still investigating how it began. A relative at the home of Ms. Jones’s mother
in Washington declined to comment on the specifics of the autopsy results.
“We just pray for their souls and thank the Lord that we had an
opportunity to share their lives,” said Don Daley, a cousin of Ms.
Jones’s. “Now that they’re gone, we hope that they go in dignity and in peace. And no more confusion.”

A mother and her four children who died in a recent Staten Island house
fire, which was subsequently ruled a murder-suicide, will be laid to
rest next week.A public viewing for the Jones family of Port Richmond will be held in Brooklyn on Tuesday. The
city medical examiner determined that the mother, Leisa Jones,
committed suicide after killing her 14-year-old son C.J., and her
10-year-old and seven-year-old daughters. All three children were found with slashed throats. Leisa Jones's youngest child, a two-year-old son, died of smoke inhalation. All four children's deaths have been ruled homicides. Investigators initially suspected C.J. set the fire and killed his siblings. However,
the handwriting on an apparent suicide note found in the flames, which
read in part "am sorry," was determined to be written by the mother.The viewing will be held at the Brooklyn Funeral Home at 2380 Pacific Street in Brownsville on Tuesday from 3 to 6 p.m.
A chapel service will follow.

The five white caskets lined up at funeral home Tuesday were a heartbreaking testament of tragedy that befell a Staten Island family.But
as mourners paused at each casket, the answers to why a mother and her
four children perished in a burst of violence and flames eluded them.

"We are all just trying to understand what happened," said bereaved relative
Donald Daley, 56, of Washington, D.C. "I want people to know they were
people that were beloved."The city Medical Examiner ruled the mother,
Leisa Jones, 33, killed her children July 22 and took her own life by
swallowing pills and torching their Port Richmond apartment.Three
of Jones' children - C.J., 14, Brittany, 10, and Melony, 7 - were found
with their throats slashed. The mother and her youngest child,
2-year-old Jermaine, died from smoke inhalation.
Police initially focused on C.J., who had a history of starting fires, as the culprit in
the shocking murder-suicide until they found an "am sorry" note believed
written by his mother.On Tuesday, the caskets containing the family members
were arranged in a semi-circle at the Brooklyn Funeral Home and Cremation Center in Brownsville.
Only the child-size coffin of little Jermaine was open.About 40 mourners,
most of them classmates of C.J., Brittany and Melony, attended the wake.
Leisa Jones' sister, Sharon Scott, 29, left the funeral chapel refusing
to believe her sibling could be responsible for something so sinister."My
sister is innocent," Scott insisted. "There won't ever be peace, not
until they find out the truth about who killed the family."
Relative Teron Johnson, 17, recalled the "good times" he had with C.J. and baby Jermaine.
"He was a good kid," Johnson said of C.J. "And the baby loved his mother."
The family plans to hold a graveside service Thursday at Glenwood Cemetery in Washington, D.C.

More than 100 loved ones bid farewell yesterday to a tragic Staten Island mom and the four children she murdered.The remains of Leisa Jones and her children were buried in the same grave - a gesture relatives said was fitting, no matter how their lives ended."She always kept them with her. She loved those kids so dearly," said cousin Annette Daley. "They're all together now."The
city medical examiner concluded that the 30-year-old Jones slit the
throats of her three oldest children - C.J., 14, Brittney, 10, and
Melonie, 7 - before torching their Port Richmond home July 22. The suicidal mom and 2-year-old Jermaine died from smoke inhalation.Cops
initially suspected that C.J., who had a razor under his body and a
history of starting fires, was behind the carnage. But investigators
shifted gears after they found a charred apology written in Jones'
handwriting.Jones' mother, Marcia Anderson, wailed as she stammered inside the Gethsemane Baptist Church.Several
family members wept when they approached the open casket of little
Jermaine. The ashes of his siblings and mother sat in wooden boxes next
to his coffin.During the service, Jones' relatives described her
as a hardworking single mom who loved her kids above all else. But
afterward, cousin Agatha Daley wondered why Jones cut short four lives."It hurt me so bad," she said. "Why didn't she just take herself and leave the kids?"