Mobile man charged after killing aunt and grandmother with chainsaw

Thomas Steele, 47, faces two counts of capital murder following the deaths of his relatives in Mobile on Oct. 12.

Investigators state that Steele used a chainsaw to kill Christy DeLoach and Dora Boone inside their home on Carolina Court. DeLoach was his aunt, and Boone was his grandmother. The suspect is currently charged with two counts of capital murder in connection with the incident.

A 911 transcript obtained by FOX10 News reveals that one of the victims called authorities before the killings to report that Steele had stopped taking his lithium medication. The caller told the dispatcher that Steele had given away his phone and car and was behaving in strange ways. She noted that he had a diagnosis of bipolar disorder and was following a specific belief system.

The dispatcher asked if the man was being harmful, but the caller said Steele appeared calm and not violent. The caller stated she would let the situation play itself out after receiving the police department number. The Mobile County Communications District director later told FOX10 that the dispatcher made a wrong judgment call by giving the caller a number instead of transferring her. The employee now faces disciplinary action and additional training.

Lori Strayer, the Alabama state director for the National Shattering Silence Coalition, argues that the system failed to catch clear warning signs. She identified four red flags, including the diagnosed mental illness and the cessation of medication. Strayer stated that the current system responds only after a tragedy occurs. She said, "The way that our system is set up, we respond after a tragedy occurs."

Dr. Lipi Roy, a board-certified internal medicine doctor, explained that lithium stabilizes mood in patients with bipolar disorder. She noted that abrupt discontinuation can cause symptoms to return rapidly. Roy said that while people with the disorder are rarely violent when medicated, stopping the medication abruptly allows mania or depression to return within days to weeks.

Strayer said the coalition is asking state Rep. Parker Moore to sponsor a bill that would create a 72-hour alert system. The proposed bill would coordinate 911, EMS, law enforcement, and the 988 suicide and crisis lifeline during psychiatric emergencies. Steele has been taken to the Alabama Department of Mental Health for an emergency evaluation.