Mum shot terminally ill husband and their two children - leaving boy, 3, an orphan

A mother shot her terminally ill husband, their two children and then herself dead in a horror murder-suicide - leaving her youngest boy, 3, an orphan, an autopsy has found.

Emily Long, 34, had uploaded a series of distressing TikToks in the lead up to the deaths, detailing her struggles to come to terms with her husband's terminal brain cancer battle. She confessed in her last video - shared just two days before killings - that she and the children were having a hard time with her husband's diagnosis, but that she was committed to overcoming her mental health issues.

Her husband Ryan Long, 48, and two of their children, eight-year-old Parker and six-year-old Ryan, were found dead at their home in New Hampshire, the US, on Monday night. Their youngest child, aged 3, was unharmed.

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According to newly released autopsy findings, Emily died by suicide from a single gunshot wound to the head. Her two children were killed after each suffering a single gunshot wound to the head, which the medical examiner ruled as homicides. Emily's husband was shot multiple times, with his death also ruled a homicide.

"Based upon the information available at this time, it appears that in the early morning hours of Monday, August 18, 2025, Ms. Long took a handgun from the home and caused the deaths of Ryan Long and her two children, Parker and Ryan, and then took her own life immediately thereafter," the medical examiner told the Daily Mail.

"While investigators are becoming aware of various concerns/issues ongoing in the household at the time of the event in question, people should avoid speculating that this event was caused by a single reason or stressor."

Police received a call on Monday alerting them to multiple deaths inside the home. On arrival at roughly 8.21pm, they found the three-year-old boy inside the home, unharmed. He is now in the custody of family, with an investigation into the incident ongoing.

On TikTok, Emily spoke about the family's journey after her husband was diagnosed with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. "All I want to do is hide under a blanket with my kids, but that isn't healthy for them and it's not healthy for me," she said.

"Today I decided I need to make a conscious effort to shift my mindset. I'm getting out of this depression whether I want to or not. I am determined to create normalcy."

The Samaritans is available 24/7 if you need to talk. You can contact them for free by calling 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org or head to the website to find your nearest branch. You matter.