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28 March 2024

Dad thought 'I killed mom' text from son was a joke

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By Staff

The father of a teen thought he was joking when his son texted him that he had killed his mother.

Noah Crooks, 14, admitted to shooting his mother more than 20 times and trying to rape her while on the phone with the 911 dispatcher on March 24, 2012. His father, William Crooks, testified on Friday that he didn't take the text seriously, according to New York Daily News and Agencies.

The father of an Iowa teen accused of murdering his mother thought the text was a joke.

William Crooks, 41, testified on Friday about a text he received from his son on March 24, 2012 that said "Dad this is Noah. I killed Mom accidentally. I regret it. Come home now please."

Fourteen-year-old Noah Crooks faces charges of first-degree murder and assault with intent to commit sexual abuse and for the death of Gretchen Crooks.

William Crooks, who was away from the family's home in Osage, Iowa, responded with "OK. Just throw her in the grove. We'll take care of her later."

In court, William Crooks talked about teaching his son how to handle guns, including the alleged .22-caliber rifle that Gretchen Crooks bought for her son in 2010, the Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier reported. He also said Noah and Gretchen had a loving but sometimes stormy relationship.

On Wednesday, the prosecution played a recording of the 10-minute 911 call Noah Crooks made, during which he admitted to shooting his mother more than 20 times and trying to rape her.

Gretchen Crooks, 37, in a photo from her Facebook page posted just days before she was allegedly shot to death by her son, Noah.

"I'm not joking at all. She's dead. I'm scared. I killed my mom with my .22. I don't know why I did it," he told dispatcher Barb Michael with the Mitchell County Sheriff's Department, according to the Mason City Globe Gazette.

Mitchell County Sheriff's Deputies Jeff Huftalin and Greg Halbach said in court on Wednesday that they found Gretchen Crooks, 37, naked from the waist down and stretched out on a sofa with her pajama top open and bullets in her torso.

Dr. Jonathan Thompson from the State Medical Examiner's Office said on Friday that Gretchen Crooks suffered 22 gunshots — two to the head, four to the neck and 15 to the chest.

During the 911 call, Noah Crooks talked about playing the violent 'Call of Duty' video game, and that his mother had recently taken it away from him because of his bad grades.

School friends testified about the teenager's sometimes violent and aggressive behavior. One boy said Noah Crooks would occasionally stab his classmates with pencils, and that he threatened to kill other students as well as his mother.

Noah Crooks was 13 at the time of the alleged murder and is being tried as a youthful offender.