Nine-year-old Andres Chateau was visiting his father, Kevin Bybee (age 44), for a routine every-other-weekend custody visit beginning April 1, 2022, at the Trellis at the Lakes Apartment Complex in St. Petersburg, Florida. When the child's mother, Jessica Chateau, attempted to pick up the child on the evening of April 3rd, she was unable to reach the father by phone or at his door, despite both of his vehicles being present. A welfare check by law enforcement concluded that exigent circumstances did not exist to force entry. The following morning, April 4th, apartment management opened the unit and discovered both the father and child deceased from gunshot wounds. The Medical Examiner ruled the child's cause of death as a gunshot wound to the head with the manner of death as homicide, while the father's death was ruled a suicide. The parents had been in a contentious custody dispute but were not married, and police identified no prior threats or warning signs that the situation would escalate to violence.
Contexts/Conditions
Is there any mention of child drug ingestion or overdose?
Is there any mention of a drowning incident (either intentional or accidental)?
Is there any mention of a firearm incident?
The fatality report states the child's "cause of death is listed as gunshot wound of head." The news article states they "found the child and his father dead from gunshot wounds." This is clearly a firearm incident.
Is there any mention of inappropriate supervision (e.g., child wandered off and drowned)?
Is there any mention of inflicted injury? (e.g. slapped, punched, kicked, choked)
The fatality report states the child's "cause of death is listed as gunshot wound of head and the manner of death is listed as homicide." The news article corroborates: "Detectives said that it appears that Bybee shot his son and then himself." A gunshot wound inflicted by the father constitutes an inflicted injury.
Is there any mention of malnutrition, starvation, or dehydration?
Is there any mention of medical neglect?
Is there any mention of a motor vehicle crash or incident?
Is there any mention of a murder-suicide incident?
The fatality report describes "the death of 9-year-old Andes Chateau and his father, Kevin Bybee-44, from an apparent murder-suicide." The child's manner of death is listed as homicide and the father's as suicide. The news article headline also identifies this as a murder-suicide.
Is there any mention of outdoor elements (including hot car deaths)?
Is there any mention of prenatal substance exposure (including fetal alcohol syndrome or neonatal abstinence syndrome)?
Is there any mention of sexual abuse?
Is there any specific mention of shaken baby or abusive head trauma?
Is there any mention of prolonged abuse or torture (including restraints, captivity)?
Is there any mention of an unsafe sleeping environment?
Individuals Involved
Was an adoptive parent or guardian involved in the death?
Was a biological father involved in the death?
The fatality report's Family Composition Chart identifies Kevin Bybee as "Father" of the deceased child. The news article refers to Andres Chateau as "their son" (referring to Bybee and the mother). Law enforcement identified the father as the suspect responsible for the child's death, and the fatality report confirms this was a murder-suicide.
Was a biological mother involved in the death?
Was a day care worker, babysitter, or nanny involved in the death?
Was a female paramour or friend involved in the death (e.g., girlfriend, stepmother)?
Was a foster parent involved in the death?
Was a male paramour or friend involved in the death (e.g., boyfriend, stepfather)?
Was another adult relative involved in the death? (e.g., grandfather, aunt)
Was a sibling involved in the death?
Child Characteristics
Was the child adopted?
Was the child homeschooled (including "cyberschooling") or taken out of school?
Was the child in foster care at the time of the incident?
Was the child living with relatives at the time of the incident (but not parents)?
Is there any mention of a neurological developmental child disability? (e.g., autism, intellectual disability, nonverbal)
Is there any mention of a physical child disability? (e.g., feeding tube)
Is there any mention of prematurity or low birthweight?
Is there a history of child protection reports prior to death (for this child or siblings)?
The fatality report states: "The father and child were involved in one investigation in 2019 with allegations of physical abuse; that investigation resulted in no findings of any maltreatments." This constitutes a prior child protection report.
Does the child have a history of foster care (but not in care at time of incident)?
Is there a history of a sibling death (separate incident from this death)?
Parent/Caregiver Factors
Was an adult charged or arrested for the child's death?
Is domestic violence by the parent/caregiver referenced?
Is there any mention that the death occurred in a temporary shelter or while homeless?
Is an intellectual disability of the parent/caregiver referenced?
Is the mental health of the parent/caregiver referenced?
Is a history of arrests or criminal charges for the parent/caregiver referenced?
Is substance use by the parent/caregiver referenced?
Notable Details
Two notable details emerge from the text. First, the fatality report states that when the mother requested a welfare check on the evening of April 3rd, "Law enforcement determined that exigent circumstances did not exist to enter the father's apartment," and the news article quotes police: "there was no reason to suspect foul play and we had no authority to forcibly enter the apartment complex or apartment." This meant the mother "waited outside the father's home for several hours prior to returning to her residence," and the bodies were not discovered until the next morning when property management opened the apartment. Second, the news article notes that the parents "had been in a contentious custody dispute, but there had been no threats or signs beforehand that it would get to this point." The parents were described as "estranged" and "not married." These details raise potential questions about law enforcement welfare check protocols in the context of custody disputes and the ability to identify risk factors preceding filicide-suicide events.
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