Tx. Woman Shot to Death by Ex-Boyfriend at Her Birthday Party on Christmas Eve
It was supposed to be a joyous Christmas Eve birthday celebration for Houston mortgage lender Carolee Taylor.
Instead, it turned deadly.
Taylor’s uncle, Dominic Ortiz, told police he was hosting the evening party at his Houston home inside a gated community near the Houston National Golf Club when he stepped outside and saw a black Jeep Cherokee slowly drive by.
The driver, Taylor’s 52-year-old ex-boyfriend Al Simon, turned around, parked in front of the house and got out of his vehicle.
Simon, Ortiz said, was armed with a long-barreled rifle and a handgun as he began walking towards him.
“I have a bone to pick,” Simon allegedly said, according to a murder warrant obtained by PEOPLE.
Simon then pointed the handgun at Ortiz’ head.
“Don’t smile at me mother******,” he allegedly told him. “We are going inside.”
Taylor’s daughter Mya told police they had just finished singing “Happy Birthday” to her mother when “everyone started yelling to get outside,” the warrant states.
She turned around and saw Simon walk into the house, armed with two guns.
Mya said she had received a text message from Simon earlier that day with a photo of her mom and Jesus that read: “You ready to party with Jesus tonight?”
Once inside, Ortiz said, Simon found Taylor, pointed the handgun at her, and reportedly said: “You and I are going to talk.”
As Simon dragged Taylor outside, he allegedly warned the 15 partygoers: “If I see the police I am going to blow her ****ing head off,” according to the warrant.
Shortly after, Ortiz said, he heard five gunshots and found Taylor lying on the porch.
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According to the warrant, Simon’s friend Jim Campbell later told police that he got a text from Simon that night asking if he could stop by to talk.
He allegedly warned Campbell not to watch the news.
Simon allegedly confessed to Campbell when he got there, stating “I killed her tonight,” the warrant states.
Simon allegedly admitted he shot Taylor once in the head and then shot her four more times when she was on the ground.
“[Campbell] said [Simon] was angry because he felt [Taylor] betrayed him,” according to the warrant.
Police later found Simon on Saturday afternoon at Hermann Park in Houston. According to Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, Simon “made a sudden move towards a bag” and was fatally shot by a deputy, he wrote on Twitter.
On Sunday, Taylor’s family released a statement obtained by ABC 13, describing the 46-year-old animal lover as an “extraordinary woman” who “changed the life of everyone she met through her dynamic smile and personality. She was such a giving person and loved life to the fullest.”
