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'Crazy nonsense'; Suspect's mother says her son thought he was being followed by vampires

Indiana State Police said that Justin Moore fired a shotgun at a police officer and firefighter while they tried to help him move his stranded car.

HODGENVILLE, Ky. — Indiana State Police said on Wednesday that the shooting death of volunteer firefighter Jacob McClanahan was a "senseless, senseless killing."

On Monday, ISP said that 31-year-old Justin Moore allegedly ran out of gas near an elementary school in Palmyra. 

Harrison County Prosecutor Otto Schalk said that body cam footage from a Palmyra Police Officer, later identified as Reserve Officer Zachary Holly, showed the officer asking Moore if he had any weapons, when Moore said he just had a knife and was asked to return the knife to his car.

When Moore reentered the vehicle, he pulled out a shotgun and began firing at Holly and McClanahan. The officer narrowly avoided being shot, but McClanahan was shot and killed in the shooting according to the footage.

ISP said Moore was then shot and killed by the officer.

Rachel Crisp, Moore's mother, said she had allegedly noticed a shift in her son over the last couple of weeks.

"He was talking about vampires following him home," she said, adding her son believed he was a werewolf and thought most of his family, including his own child was an alleged vampire. 

"Just crazy nonsense stuff like that," she said. "It just doesn't make any sense."

Crisp lives in Hodgenville, KY, so she said the Kentucky State Police told them what happened. They visited her parents home in Cecilia, KY and she said her parents told her Moore had been involved in a shooting.

Crisp said she wants to send her condolences to McClanahan's family.

"He was just there trying to help my son," she said. "I feel sorry for his parents, and his family members. Here he was, trying to do a good deed and everything, and then get caught up in the mess like this and end up losing his life."

Credit: Rachel Crisp

Crisp said her son has eight children, seven biological and one stepchild. She said her family, in general, has been allegedly struggling this last year, especially with her husband's health.

"He ended up catching MRSA and had been in the hospital for seven months. He can't walk. Instead, he's in a wheelchair and stuff now," Crisp said. She added they don't know when her husband will be able to walk again, and that he was the main breadwinner of the house.

"So I mean, everything's been really tough. Plus, I'm raising my 12-year-old granddaughter," said Crisp.

Police said on Wednesday they aren't sure if Moore suffered from any sort of mental illness and said that he didn't make any mention of vampires in any of the video footage of the shooting.

"You could say he was agitated," Schalk said. "But nothing that would have given arise to escalating it to a 'shots fired' situation."

Officials aren't sure what Moore's motive was for the shooting or even why Moore was in Corydon to begin with.

Crisp said he was allegedly visiting his ex in Owensboro Monday evening. However, she says he lived in Cecilia with her parents so she isn't sure why he would have been in Corydon.

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