DAVIE COUNTY, N.C. — Editor's note: We initially reported Ashton Brown's phone call was to 911. Davie County officials have clarified with us, that Brown did not dial 911, but instead phoned the non-emergency line to the sheriff's department.
We're learning more about the moments that led up to a murder-suicide in Davie County. The sheriff's office said a man killed his girlfriend and their two young children - a 4-year-old girl and an 8-month-old boy - Monday before setting the house on fire and turning the gun on himself.
On Friday, the sheriff's office released a recording from a non-emergency line call from the mother, Ashton Brown, earlier that day.
In the call, Brown kept asking to speak to a deputy.
Operator: "Davie Communications."
Brown: "Hi, um, how do you call in the speak with a deputy or anything?"
Operator: "What do you need to speak to an officer about?"
Brown: "I'm just needing to speak with an, um...about a safety reason."
The conversation continued. Brown said she was calling on behalf of her fiance. She said they both wanted to talk with a deputy. He never got on the phone during this initial call to the sheriff's office.
Brown said again, that the call was about "safety precautions."
Dispatch said an officer would call the couple.
Thirty minutes before the call, surveillance video showed the family walking into the sheriff's office. They asked to speak with an officer but didn't say why.
Before leaving, the man asked about getting a concealed carry permit.
Thirty minutes later, the mother called the non-emergency number for the sheriff's office. The call lasted about two minutes. Then, officials said an officer called back and talked to the father in four separate phone calls within 20 minutes. The man never said what he wanted.
Later on, deputies said the man shot and killed his family, set the home on fire and then shot and killed himself.
- Mother, Ashton Brown, 26
- Daughter, Bella, 4
- Son, Brixx, 8 months
- Father, Aschod Ewing-Meeks, 26
Sheriff JD Hartman said the family lived at the house on Junction Road for two years, and that deputies had never been called to the home.