'I will never forget you': Landen Lavarnia remembered with handwritten notes, kind words

The northwest Phoenix house where 9-year-old Landen Lavarnia lived sat abandoned Thursday morning, except for a few touching mementos.

Bouquets of flowers, plush stuffed animals and candles lined the concrete pavement while two secured balloons gently danced on the breeze near the entrance to the home. Scrawled next to a drawn cross, the message "We Love You Landen" greeted mourners.

Taped to the front door, a simple, heartbreaking message written in blue crayon was left by a friend of Landen's.

"Dear Landon (sic). You were my best friend. You were always by my side. I will never forget you."

Three days earlier, Landen was on spring break from elementary school, inside the ranch-style house when he was struck in the head by a bullet discharged by a 9mm handgun. He died Tuesday.

MORE: Landen Lavarnia shooting: What we know, what we don't

The gravel-filled front lawn of the house near 35th Avenue and Cactus Road, which neighbors said was once a place where the boy and his younger siblings could be seen playing together, is now a sobering monument to the horrific incident.

The boy's parents  face first-degree murder charges, after Phoenix police said their investigation showed the couple delayed calling emergency personnel so they could clean up blood after the boy was shot. Police have said Landen's mother claimed his 2-year-old brother picked up a loaded gun and fired the bullet that eventually killed him. Their investigation is ongoing.

Boy remembered fondly

Outside the house Thursday, black plastic garbage bags filled with bright-yellow crime-scene tape billowed out on to the sidewalk, not far from the makeshift memorial of small items that had been placed to honor the boy.

Landen was described by friends, neighbors and school officials as a pleasant kid who liked helping others.

Neighbor Valerie Corona said Landen would be missed by her family. She told The Arizona Republic this week Landen would help one of her sons, who has cerebral palsy, come home.

"He was a really good kid. Real gentle. Real good with him," she said.

Two of her other young children recalled playing and joking with Landen, who they said was always down to play tag or basketball.

"It's hard for kids to process and to really understand the depth of the situation," Corona said.

Grief at school

The loss permeated Sahuaro Elementary School, where Landen was a second-grader. The school and the Washington Elementary School District released a statement to parents early this week.

"Landen was a very sweet and kind boy who was a good friend to all. He was very smart, creative and clever, and always helped his classmates when working in groups. The loss of a student is heartbreaking and everyone at Sahuaro Elementary is grieving this sudden and tragic loss," the statement said.

Principal Deb Menendez wrote in a letter to parents that faculty and staff were heartbroken to hear of the boy's death.

"The loss of a child is the most difficult loss for any school, staff, and certainly for our students. We are all grieving, but I know that as a learning community we will lean on each other, support each other and comfort one another," Menendez wrote. "Please keep our students and their teachers and, more importantly, the family of our student in your thoughts during this sad time."

The elementary school, which is now on spring break, has initiated a plan with the district's crisis team to notify parents of the incident. Social workers are scheduled to meet with all second-grade students and their families when school continues Monday, the district said.

Questions remain about boy's death

According to Phoenix police, Landen's mother, Wendy Lavarnia, 28, originally told investigators she sat a loaded handgun on a bed next to the boy's 2-year-old brother, who grabbed the gun and fired it. She told police her 4-year-old son also was nearby.

Authorities said Wednesday that the mother's story was inconsistent and contradictory to evidence found at the residence. Police said they found evidence that efforts were made to clean up splattered blood in the home and the boy's wound before Wendy Lavarnia called 911.

"We have a 9-year-old boy critically wounded, shot in the head, in dire need of life-saving efforts and care which was delayed and not provided to this young man. It definitely shocks your conscience," said Sgt. Vince Lewis, a Phoenix police spokesman, during a Wednesday press conference.

Wendy Lavarnia and the boy's father, Kansas Lavarnia, 31, were booked into the Maricopa County Jail and are now facing first-degree murder charges in addition to several other felonies.

As the investigation continues, police stressed they continue to evaluate the mother's account of what happened, as well as the father's role in the events.

The other children who were in the house at the time of the shooting have been placed into a licensed foster home, the Department of Child Safety said Wednesday evening.

The DCS said the agency had been involved with the couple since 2014, when Wendy Lavarnia gave birth to a substance-exposed newborn. The children, including Landen, were removed from the home until after the couple successfully completed programs to address drug and domestic violence issues, as well as intensive parenting training,  the DCS said in a statement.

DCS said even after the children were returned, "the court maintained oversight and DCS maintained legal custody of the children."