Mother of News Shooting Suspect Says ‘Fathers Need To Be Fathers’

Yesterday morning, a 24-year-old Memphis man, Jarred Nathan, walked into a local news station and opened fire, according to Fox 13 News. According to Nathan’s mother, the absence of fathers in the household in cases like this one was partially to blame.

The 26-year-old Nathan entered the Fox13 Station and brandished a weapon at an employee working in the front of the building before firing one shot and fleeing the scene. Though no injuries were reported, he was charged with aggravated assault and reckless endangerment. His mother, Marsha McKinney, had an emotional interview that struck a chord. “I think that my son is crying out for attention because he needs some help,” she said. “Anybody that would come to the news and shoot at anybody for that is a cry for some help. And if he once again needs some help and you’re telling me that was the case, then he needs some help.”

McKinney revealed that her son has struggled with mental health issues for some time.

She also made a plea to absent fathers. “Fathers need to be fathers to their sons. This is a reflection of why his daddy should’ve been there,” she said in tears. “You teach your boys how to be men. They need their fathers. If they’re not at home with their sons, no matter who they’re around…it has not been an easy road for me, as a parent.” Nathan, who was armed with an AR-15, said he had no intentions to harm anyone but that he was frustrated about no one listening to him. A friend of the Memphis man said he planned to take him to a shelter later that evening.

According to his mother, Nathan has been receiving treatment at a mental health treatment center in Shelby County since he was 16. “I want the viewers to know that he’s not a bad person at all,” she said. “He’s one of the nicest and kindest you will meet. Everybody has another side to them.”

Nathan was given a $250,000 bond on the s charges.