Texas Attorney Accused of Killing and Cremating His Son with Down Syndrome

A man in Texas is charged with murder after allegedly shooting his son by accident after mistaking him for an intruder. He burned the body before contacting the police.

The Murder of Mark Randall Howard

Recently, Michael C. Howard, a 68-year-old attorney in Houston, contacted the authorities after allegedly shooting his 20-year-old son, Mark Randall Howard, with a shotgun. He claimed he mistook Mark for an intruder before pulling the trigger.

Mark Randall Howard was diagnosed with Down syndrome, but was "high functioning" and held a job, according to KBTX.

About 17 hours had passed between the death of Michael's son and him calling the police. Within these 17 hours were events that racked up his criminal charges.

Howard ended up loading his son's body into a backhoe on his tractor and drove him nearly two miles from the scene and placed his body on a trash heap. He then proceeded to burn the body in a cremation effort that he claimed his son wanted.

After 17 hours and Howard using a water hose to wash away the blood where his son was shot, he finally called the police to report the accident.

When deputies arrived to the scene, they found burned body parts and bones inside the trash pile which were sent to the medical examiner's office in Jefferson County.

Sabine County Sheriff's Office Deputy J.P. MacDonough stated that the fact that Howard took the time to burn the body while attempting to clean up the crime scene, leads him to take it as "indicative of nefarious purposes or for nefarious purposes."

Michael C. Howard has been jailed in Sabine County while charged with murder and tampering with evidence on a $20 million bond.