BOISE, Idaho — An Idaho father killed a neighboring family because he was upset that the neighbor’s 18-year-old son had reportedly exposed himself to the man’s children, a police document alleges.
Majorjon Kaylor, 31, of Kellogg, is charged with four counts of first-degree murder in the Father’s Day shooting in Kellogg, nearly 400 miles north of Boise.
Mr. Kaylor shot Kenneth Guardipee, 65; his daughter Kenna Guardipee, 41; and her youngest son, 16-year-old Aiken Smith, in the temple at close range, an Idaho State Police detective said in a probable cause affidavit that was released Tuesday evening. Aiken’s older brother, 18-year-old Devin Smith, was shot multiple times in the head, according to the document.
Kaylor and his wife, Kaylie Kaylor, told investigators that they were upset because Devin Smith had exposed himself in front of his bedroom window in view of the Kaylors' young daughters several days earlier. The families shared a duplex, and the girls were playing in the yard when the exposure allegedly occurred.
The alleged indecent exposure was reported to the police, and the police report was forwarded to the county prosecutor the same day so a criminal charge could be filed, Kellogg police Chief Paul Twidt told The Associated Press on Tuesday.
But on Sunday evening, the Kaylors had an argument with Kenna and Kenneth Guardipee over how the allegation was being handled. That’s when Majorjon Kaylor allegedly shot both adults in the head before going inside the family's apartment to kill the two sons, according to probable cause affidavit.
Mr. Kaylor made his first appearance in court on Tuesday and is being held without bond. He has not yet entered a plea, and a preliminary hearing has been set for July 3. Prosecutors could seek the death penalty, but they don't have to inform the court of their plans until 60 days after a plea is entered.
In a police interview after the shooting, Ms. Kaylor said her husband had warned police that if if an indecent exposure were to happen again, that he “was going to take care of it, which she indicated she interpreted as more like beating someone up,” Idaho State police Detective Justin Klitch wrote in the affidavit.
Ms. Kaylor also said she and her husband had shared a meme that referred to Leon Gary Plauche, a father who shot a man suspected of abducting and sexually abusing his son in a Louisiana airport in 1984, according to the affidavit. The meme included a drawing of Plauche shooting the suspected abuser, along with the words “How to catch a predator.”
She also told the detective that after the shootings, her husband handed her his wallet, keys and phone and told her to tell their children that “he protected them,” according to the affidavit.
In a separate interview, Majorjon Kaylor told police that he was suspicious of Devin Smith and concerned about his own kids, and that he felt the Guardipees weren't taking his concerns seriously, Detective Klitch wrote in the affidavit.
“Kaylor said he ‘Snapped,’ ‘Lost it,' and ‘Did something about it,’ ” Detective Klitch wrote.
Police arrived arrived at the shooting Sunday night after one person called 911 to report shots fired and another called to report that “an individual had executed his neighbors,” according to the affidavit. Majorjon Kaylor was still at the duplex when police arrived.
The charging documents allege the shootings of the two oldest victims were “premeditated and/or to execute vengeance.” The other killings were allegedly “premeditated, to executive vengeance, and/or committed in the perpetration of burglary,” according to the charging documents. Under Idaho law, it is considered burglary to enter a house, room or apartment with the intent to commit a felony such as murder.
First Published: June 21, 2023, 5:56 p.m.
