Fort Hood killer apparently had mental health issues

FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) — A Fort Hood official says the unstable mental condition of the gunman who killed three people

and wounded 16 others at the Texas military post is believed to be an underlying cause of the attack.

Fort Hood's senior officer, Lt. Gen. Mark Milley, said Thursday that there's "very strong evidence" that Spc. Ivan Lopez had a medical history indicating an unstable psychological condition and that it was believed to a "fundamental underlying cause" in Thursday's shooting.

Investigators have been searching Lopez's home. A spokesman says they've also been questioning his wife.

A top Army official says the soldier had seen a psychiatrist last month, and didn't show any signs of being a threat to himself or others. Army Secretary John McHugh adds that there are no apparent ties to extremist groups.

FORT HOOD-VICTIMS

Fort Hood victim's mom, 77, had just met daughter

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — The 77-year-old mother of an Illinois soldier killed during an attack at Fort Hood, Texas, says she was reunited less than two weeks earlier with a daughter she gave up for adoption at birth.

Mary Muntean of Effingham, Ill., says she was still celebrating that reunion when she got a call telling her that her son, U.S. Army Sgt. Timothy Owens, was killed Wednesday in the attack at Fort Hood. He was one of four soldiers — including the gunman — killed. Another 16 were injured.

Muntean tells The Associated Press she has heart problems and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. She said her daughter sought her out, and the two met on March 23.