Austin pediatrician murdered in hostage incident parents recall: ‘she beamed with positivity’



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Dr Katherine Lindley Dodson, a pediatrician at Children’s Medical Group in Austin, was killed in a murder-suicide Tuesday when a doctor with a terminal illness entered the office with a gun.

Austin Police are still trying to figure out how and why this tragedy happened, but tributes have poured in over the past 24 hours about the incredible person and doctor that Dr Dodson was.

Leslie Chunta, who lives in Austin and has two children in Dr Dodson’s care, said she always goes the extra mile to care for her children, even recently following months after an exam to share new information who could help her son. .

“On New Year’s Day she called me and mentioned that she had taken some extra training and thought about my son, and she went out of her way to call me and ask me how was going my son, and asking me how I was doing, ”she told Fox News. “We were really struggling, so it was kind of a breath of fresh air to hear about her. It set us on the path to helping my son find resources to help him improve his life, improve our lives as a family. Without her awareness, without her support, my son would not have had a lawyer. “

The family of Dr Katherine Lindley Dodson, who was killed on Tuesday in a murder-suicide, shared this photo.

The family of Dr Katherine Lindley Dodson, who was killed on Tuesday in a murder-suicide, shared this photo.
(Family of Dr Katherine Lindley Dodson)

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It wasn’t just Dr Dodson’s work ethic and caring for his patients, as Chunta put it, Dr Dodson always radiated “positivity, love and happiness.”

“My son loves going to see her. Some of the things he’s working on, he was really excited to go tell her,” Chunta said. “I don’t know how I’m going to tell my son that we can’t see her.”

Laura Whittaker, whose son has been in Dr Dodson’s care since last January, said from day one, “Not only did she make us feel like everything was going to be fine, but she was the kind of doctor who made you feel good. made her feel like she was really into it with you. “

“It’s been interesting to see how he reacts and develops with different people over time,” Whittaker told Fox News. “We saw her two weeks ago for her 12 month checkup, and I had the feeling that he remembered her even seeing her every few months when she was a baby.

Daniel Abernathy shared this photo of his son being treated by Dr. Dodson.

Daniel Abernathy shared this photo of his son being treated by Dr. Dodson.
(Twitter / Daniel Abernathy @ dabernathy89)

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Karen Vladeck, whose two children were in the care of Dr. Dodson, tweeted that Dr. Dodson “made you feel that your child’s illness was the only one that mattered at the time, even though you knew there was a line of other children and parents anxiously waiting to see her. “

“She lived right next to us and I would often see her running around taking her 3 children to various activities or to the park,” Vladeck wrote. “Even though she had hundreds of patients, she would always ask ‘How’s Syd’s ear? How does Maddie feel after this vaccine? ‘ ‘

Dr. Dodson is survived by her three children and her husband. Her family said in a statement Wednesday that they “are beyond the devastation of the tragic, sudden and senseless loss of our beloved Lindley.”

“As a dedicated mother, wife, daughter, friend and pediatrician, she radiated light, love and joy in everything she did and with everyone she touched. She developed an immediate relationship with her patients and had the unique ability to make you feel like the only person in the room, ”her family said. “We are very grateful for the outpouring of love and concern, but due to the continuing nature of this investigation and our request for confidentiality during this horrific time, we will have no further comment.”

A tribute to Dr Katherine Lindley Dodson

A tribute to Dr Katherine Lindley Dodson
(Family of Dr Katherine Lindley Dodson)

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Police said a tragedy struck the children’s medical group around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday when Dr Bharat Narumanchi, who had just been diagnosed with cancer and had “weeks to live”, entered the facility with a pistol, a shotgun and two sports bags.

Dr Narumanchi initially took five hostages, but four escaped or were released. Negotiators spent hours trying to communicate with Dr Narumanchi through a megaphone until a SWAT team discovered the bodies of Dr Narumanchi and Dr Dodson on Tuesday evening.

Dr Dodson received his BA in chemistry from Washington & Lee University in 1999, then received his MD from Louisiana State University School of Medicine in New Orleans in 2003, according to his LinkedIn.

After graduation, she worked as a pediatric resident at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, as a medical instructor at Harvard Medical School, and as an emergency care physician at Boston Children’s Hospital.

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She worked as a pediatric hospitalist for a decade at Seton Health Care Family, which is part of the Dell Children’s Medical Center.

“Last night we received the tragic news that one of our former Dell Children’s Hospitalists, Dr Lindley Dodson, was killed last night. We are shocked and saddened by this news, and our thoughts and prayers are with us. family, friends and family of Dr. Dodson. colleagues, “a spokesperson for Dell Children’s Medical Center told Fox News in a statement.” Dr. Dodson was a hard-working and compassionate provider who will be sorely missed.



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