"The incredible courage" of the teenager who was able to save one of her two sisters from being drowned by her mother

By Jeffrey Collins - The Associated Press

A mother drowned one of her daughters in her South Carolina home and was trying to kill another, when the eldest daughter was awakened by screams and managed to save the girl, according to authorities.

Jamie Bradley Brun, 37, was charged with murder and attempted murder after the attack in the early hours of Friday at her home on St. Helena Island, she said at a news conference. P.J. Tanner, Beaufort County Sheriff.

Brun has spoken to investigators. Tanner called it a horrific crime, but told reporters he wouldn't say why Brun wanted to kill his daughters.

Jamie Bradley Brun, 37, was charged with murder and attempted murder. AP

"I'm not a mental health expert. It's not my job to determine if someone has a mental problem," he said.

Brun's oldest daughter, 16, was sleeping around 1:30 a.m. on Friday when her 8-year-old sister's screams woke her up. The sheriff did not say how exactly the mother was trying to drown her daughter, but the girl's screams came from the bathroom.

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The teen went to the bathroom and managed to force her sister from her mother and run to the nearby home of relatives to call 911, Tanner said.

"I'm very proud of her. I think he did an admirable job. He stood up for his family when no one else was around," Tanner said. "His courage is incredible."

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Police officers arrived eight minutes later and found Braun and her 6-year-old daughter, who was pronounced dead at the hospital after cardiac resuscitation by police and paramedics, investigators said.

Brun tried to grab the gun from one of the officers as she was being arrested and officers shot her with a stun gun, Tanner said.

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The woman remains in custody without bail. Prison and court records did not indicate whether he had an attorney.

The 8-year-old did not appear to have been seriously injured, and the sheriff said she and her teenage sister were being cared for by other family members.

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Brun has no criminal record in South Carolina. Authorities had been called to the home only once about two years ago after a school employee became concerned about the mental state of one of the girls, Tanner said.

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"We have a lot of information and a lot of details, but at this time we can't share them," Tanner said.