Argus in Fremont, California

Major slays family then kills himself in Satellite Beach

Retired Air Force major Bert E. Cowden 42 living with a long pain from a Vietnam helicopter crash shot his wife Dora 35 and his children Duke 12 Buck 11 Carolina 10 and Camille 5 in a white stucco home, then killed himself while on a call to police. Neighbors described constant pain from back injuries, and investigators found two handguns at the scene. Cowden, recently relocated from Texas, had been decorated for rescue helicopter work and was retired on 100 percent disability. Police say five homicides and the suicide comprise the case.