NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — After the family of Kenneth Beach — accused of murdering his friend Josue Chirino — spoke out, saying that the tragedy could have been avoided if the mental health system had provided the necessary intervention, Beach's mother is now shedding light on where the gun came from that police say Beach fired.
What originally happened?
Police say Tamatha Edwards' son, Kenneth Beach, shot and killed Josue Chirino Wednesday night inside a recording studio at McDaniel Street in Nashville.
As NewsChannel 5's Kelsey Gibbs reported, the 39-year-old was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, Schizophrenia, and Depression, according to his family. They claim that Beach had been in a manic state for three months leading up to the tragic incident.
His wife took him to Vanderbilt University Medical Center on Monday, where he spent the night. Subsequently, Beach's mother attempted to secure help at Centerstone on Wednesday.
However, because Beach asserted that he was not a danger to himself, the facility reportedly only scheduled a follow-up appointment for the next day.
On that same night, Beach shot and killed his friend Josue Chirino.
How did Chirino and Beach know each other?
Beyond just a childhood friend, Edwards says the two were like brothers.
Edwards says she helped raise Chirino since he was little, and he was the father of her own daughter's baby.
What is the new information NewsChannel 5 gathered from Beach's mom?
Documentation from Beach's past run-ins with police show at one point, a judge ordered that Beach could not have weapons of any kind. Edwards told NewsChannel 5 Monday that he got the gun used in the shooting last week from Chirino himself when the two met up.
Edwards told NewsChannel 5 last week she tried to get Beach psychiatric help, but no one would take him because he wasn't suicidal.
"Every psychiatric hospital I reached out to literally said if he comes in and tells us he's okay, we have to let them go," Edwards said.
NewsChannel 5 originally reported on Kenneth Beach's family speaking out about his mental health struggles, and how the system failed him, just a few days ago. You can watch our original story below.
