By C.J. Carnacchio
Leader Editor
A peaceful neighborhood in Oxford Township was rocked Sunday by an unthinkable tragedy as two family members were found dead and a third severely wounded inside a home in the 100 block of Kintyre, just west of M-24.
The deceased are Oxford Township resident Daryne Gailey, 29, and his 7-month-old daughter Charley Hendrick.
Hendrick’s death was the result of blunt force trauma to the head and has been ruled a homicide, according to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office. Her body was found laying in her crib.
Gailey, a 2003 Oxford High School graduate and a full-time clerk at the Kroger grocery store in Lake Orion, was found dead in the bathroom. He had three ‘superficial cuts? to his throat along with one deep laceration, according to sheriff’s office.
‘It was so bloody,? said Sheriff Mike Bouchard.
An official determination as to the cause of Gailey’s death is still pending.
Based on his experience, Undersheriff Mike McCabe said the superficial cuts are consistent with someone who was attempting to kill himself, but kept hesitating until he was finally able to complete the act.
?(The superficial cuts) would be indicative of somebody trying to commit suicide,? he said. ‘We see that all the time with some people that slit their wrists or slit their throat.?
When deputies entered the home around 10 a.m., Gailey’s mother, Sylvia Majewska, was sitting on the couch. The 65-year-old Addison resident had multiple lacerations on her wrist and arm. She had suffered a ‘tremendous loss of blood,? according to Bouchard.
McCabe noted her arm was soaking in a bucket of water when deputies found her.
‘Given the injuries on her, it wouldn’t (have) taken long for her to perish if the deputy hadn’t gone in,? Bouchard said.
A box-cutter was recovered at the scene by investigators and it appears to be the instrument that was used to inflict both Gailey and Majewska’s injuries.
Sheriff’s investigators are still trying to piece together exactly what happened based on forensic evidence.
‘How (it) all happened, we don’t know,? Bouchard said. ‘We have some ideas.?
Although Majewska was conscious and able to talk when deputies found her, Bouchard said she didn’t say anything coherent that could help investigators. She remains hospitalized in Pontiac. Investigators have thus far been unable to interview Majewska.
‘Hopefully, she’ll be able to shed a tremendous amount of light on (what happened),? the sheriff said.
According to Bouchard, there appeared to be no signs of forced entry into the home.
‘Nothing we’ve seen so far leads us to believe it involved anyone outside the home,? he said.
McCabe noted there were also ‘no signs of a struggle inside the home.?
‘There’s no sign of struggle where (Gailey) was found in the bathroom,? he said.
Although sheriff’s deputies didn’t discover the scene until Sunday morning, the story actually began Saturday night when Gailey didn’t return his daughter to her mother, Amanda (Hendrick) Gailey, who lives in Tuscola County near Caro.
The mother, who is Gailey’s ex-wife, had full physical and legal custody of the child. Gailey, who was mentally disabled and had been a special education student at OHS, had visitation rights and was allowed to have the baby, but only when he was being supervised by another adult
‘He couldn’t be alone with the baby,? said McCabe, who noted sheriff’s investigators were told Majewska would accompany Gailey whenever he went to pick up or drop off his daughter.
When Hendrick wasn’t returned to her mother, sheriff’s deputies did welfare checks Saturday night at Gailey’s home on Kintyre and Majewska’s home in Addison.
When deputies visited Gailey’s home, there was no activity. No lights were on. There were no vehicles present. No one answered the door.
No one appeared to be home at Majewska’s residence, either.
On Sunday morning, Gailey’s father, who lives in Huntington Woods, called deputies to the Kintyre home. When deputies knocked, Majewska said, ‘Come in,? as she sat on the couch ‘profusely bleeding,? according to Bouchard.
It was then they discovered the gruesome and puzzling scene.
‘It’s a little bit strange,? Bouchard said.
Sheriff’s investigators drove up to Tuscola to notify the infant’s mother in person.
‘Obviously, she’s pretty distraught,? Bouchard said. ‘Anybody that has a child understands what it would be like to lose a child at 7 months old.?
To those who had known Gailey, news of this tragedy came as quite a shock.
‘It was really sad (to hear) because he was one of those people that everybody just felt like they should stick up for because he was such a kind soul,? said Leonard Elementary Principal Paul McDevitt. ‘When I heard about it, I was like, ‘Why him???
McDevitt met Gailey back when he was a teacher at the high school more than a decade ago.
‘Daryne was a great, great guy. He was probably one of the most friendly people I’ve ever met,? he said. ‘He was friends with everybody. He was a kid that you would have expected to not really fit in very well, but he found a way. He was friends with everybody and everybody accepted him into their group.?
He continued to make an impression on people through his job at Kroger.
‘He (had) that face that everybody remembered when they’d go there,? McDevitt said. ‘And he remembered everybody by name. He had a huge impact on a lot of people.?
McDevitt noted there were ‘hundreds? of posts on Facebook from people sharing their thoughts about Gailey and the type of person he was.
‘For all the challenges he had in life, he certainly found a way overcome all of that and become a person that so many people were inspired by,? he said. ‘Everybody liked Daryne.?