A year later, authorities have not filed a final report on Bystrack shootings in Alton

More than a year after the shooting deaths of Angela and Robert Bystrack the N.H. Attorney General’s office has still not issued a final report on the apparent murder-suicide.

Jane Young, who is charge of the AG’s criminal division, confirmed yesterday that the police investigation is still officially opened but indicated there has been no new information about the Bystrack situation for some time.

“It’s pretty much the same,” she said. “The police still have to gather the information they have and do the final report but nothing has changed… I can’t tell you technically the case is closed because we’ve not done a final review and the mater is not officially closed. But I went out there that morning and I can tell you there’s no new information.

“The State Police just have to gather their information and I don’t think that piece has been done yet,” she concluded.

Assistant Attorney General Jacqueline Rompre is in court this week and was not available for comment.

The deaths of Angie and Rob Bystrack, who were two well-known residents, shocked this small town when it occurred Feb. 15, 2008. Police were notified of the crimes when the married couple’s 11-year old daughter, Cassandra “Cassie” Bystrack, who was also shot in the incident, went to a neighbor’s home and told them about what apparently happened in the Bystrack’s kitchen that morning.

The neighbor called police at approximately 7 a.m. Published reports at the time indicated that Cassie Bystrack had said, “My mommy shot my daddy, then she shot me, then she shot herself.”
 A television news story said a neighbor reported that a bullet had grazed Cassie on the forehead.

According to a statement released by New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly A. Ayotte, New Hampshire State Police Colonel Frederick H. Booth and Alton Police Chief Philip Smith the day of the crimes, Robert Bystrack, 44, and Angela Bystrack, 42, were shot to death at their 167 Youngstown Road home in an apparent murder-suicide. Autopsies were scheduled for the next day.

Cassie Bystrack was treated at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon for her injuries and later released.

Shortly after the killings, Cassie Bystrack moved out of the area to live with family members in another part of the country. A website set up by the Alton School District to offer comfort for the youngster, www.caringforcassie.com, does not have a posting dated later than March 3, 2008.

But the verifiable details of the crime — exactly who shot whom, what kind of weapon was used and what the motive may have been for the killings — has never been publicly disclosed.

Young said the final report should be available within the next 30 days.