Shot Tot Hid for Hours After Dad Killed Mom

A gravely wounded 3-year-old boy hid in a garbage can for 12 hours after his father fatally shot his mom, then killed himself, according to law enforcement authorities. Police followed a trail of blood to the trash can where they found the boy bleeding from 3 gunshot wounds to his shoulder, stomach and chest. His parents lay dead on lawn chairs outside the Anaheim home, and his uninjured 5-year-old brother was hiding elsewhere in the house. The older boy told police he could hear his baby brother "screaming and hollering," but didn't know where he was.

The "horrific scene" was discovered by a concerned co-worker who came to the house looking for the man, and told the older boy to call the cops, said a police spokesman. The toddler is expected to survive. A neighbor described the father as a "very decent" man. "We're very surprised by what happened," she added. A friend said the family was having financial problems. Police are continuing to investigate. "It's very difficult to determine a motive for killing your own kids," the police spokesman told AP. (More crime stories.)