A Missouri teacher who was named Teacher of the Year started a “suspicious” fire that killed four young children just hours after posting on social media that she was “living every day like it was my last.” Police announced that he did so.
Bernadine “Birdie” Prusner and her children – twins Ellie Prusner and Ivy Prusner, 9 years old. Jackson Spader, 5 years old. Millie Spader and her 2-year-old son Millie Spader were all killed in a fire at their Ferguson home Monday morning.
On Wednesday, the St. Louis County Police Department confirmed that investigators had ruled the fire a murder-suicide.
“It is believed that Bernadine intentionally set the mattress on fire, which is where the fire started,” the agency said in a statement.
“There was also a note left behind by Bernadine stating her intention to take her life and that of her children,” the statement said, but did not elaborate on the contents of the note.
At about 12:15 a.m. Monday morning, hours before the 4:30 a.m. fire, Prusner, 39, posted about her children on Facebook.
“All of my children are sleeping peacefully in my bed…I would do anything for them because I know they are so loved,” she wrote. “This is my favorite moment.”
On Sunday, the Lewis & Clark Community College professor shared a grinning selfie of his young colleague.
“Us against the world. So happy to be their mom,” she captioned the photo.
“Let’s live each day like it’s our last!” Prusner also wrote in detail about her plans to take her children to soccer games and reptile shows.
At the time of her death, Prusner was in a “terrible situation” due to “ongoing litigation” with her ex-husband and the father of her twin daughters, according to a statement from her loved ones shared on GoFundMe.
Prusner and her ex, David Prusner, divorced in 2017 and shared joint custody of Ivy and Ellie until last year, but they blocked Prusner’s plans to move to Creve Coeur, a St. Louis suburb about 10 miles away. His father reportedly requested that he do so. In the court record.
David Prusner was concerned about the proximity of his new home to his mother, whom his ex-wife described as a “psychotic,” documents reveal.
Bernadine Prusner’s attorney, Nathan Cohen, told the Post, “This was the first cast I ever had, and both parents objected to the other parent being near the other parent.”
Prusner was also facing a custody battle with her ex-girlfriend, Jared Spader, who is the father of Jackson and Millie.
“[David and Jared] We coordinated their efforts,” Cohen claimed.
“She saw her children being used as foils by their father and considered the process and system for resolving the claims to be cumbersome, tedious and never-ending.” It is written in the statement.
“Every day Birdie takes a step forward, her ex-husband or ex-boyfriend will take action that denigrates or undermines her role as a mother,” they added.
Cohen told the Post he agreed with the family’s statement and said Prusner makes “less than $60,000 a year” and struggles to meet the costs of being a legal jockey.
Still, Cohen said he never suspected his client, who won the Missouri Teacher of the Year award in 2013 from the American Commission on Recognition of Outstanding Teachers, was a danger to himself or his children.
“It’s really strange,” he said of the murder-suicide verdict.
“Did I miss my staff this past week? She was one of those rare clients you get in the family law field who was not only cheerful but unpretentious,” he added.
“Last week, my ex-husband made a new move. The last thing I said [to her] It was, ‘Don’t worry, Birdie, I’m going to kick this one down too’…I guess I missed all the signs,” Cohen lamented.
As of Thursday, a GoFundMe set up by Prusner’s family had raised more than $12,000 of its $15,000 goal.
According to KSDK, Jared Spader also released a statement on behalf of himself and David Prusner.
“As fathers, we must now focus on honoring four beautiful lives, and we will do it together,” the devastated fathers said, while also praising the community for support. I was grateful.
A GoFundMe in honor of Jackson and Millie Spader has raised more than $36,000, triple its $12,000 goal.
