Texas Mother Killed by Police After She Fatally Shot Her Two Daughters
Texas police shot and killed a woman Friday after they said she shot and killed her daughters and then refused to drop her weapon.
Authorities say Christy Sheats, 42, was found armed in the street outside a Fort Bend County home Friday afternoon, near the bodies of her daughters Madison, 17, and Taylor Sheats, 22.
One of Sheats' daughters was pronounced dead at the scene, the Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office said; the other was hospitalized but later died from her injuries. It was not immediately clear which daughter died at the scene.
Authorities first responded to the scene about 5 p.m. local time, following calls of shots fired in the area.
"After refusing to drop her weapon," Sheats was shot and killed by a Fulshear city police officer who was assisting, the sheriff's office said.
Sheats' husband, the girls' father, was at the home at the time of the shooting and ran for help, police told KHOU.
A handgun was recovered from the scene, police told the station.
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"It would be too premature to give you a motive as to why something like this took place," Sheriff Troy Nehls told KTRK. "The best we can to pray for the father and husband so he can work through this."
Nehls said deputies had been to the home before, but was unable to say why, according to KTRK.
Fulshear police confirmed their officer's involvement in a statement on Facebook: "Our officer was forced to take action. He was not injured and no deputies were injured. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all involved."
The department later wrote, "This was a tragic and unfortunate occurrence and we are deeply saddened by the results."
A Fulshear police representative told PEOPLE he did not have information on how the department will handle the officer involved in the shooting, and he said no such information would be released going forward. Fort Bend County Sheriff's representatives did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.
The neighborhood is reportedly still reeling from the shooting – and what it means about the Sheats family.
"Those parents are good. They are hard-working," one neighbor told KTRK. "Very good family. I do not know how this happened. So I cannot believe that."
Neighbor Austin Enke, who said he had attended school with one of the daughters, told KHOU: "It's crazy. The neighborhood has never seen this kind of thing before. It's always quiet. This is surprising. They never showed any kind of thing that was wrong with them whatsoever."
