Taylor Sheats: One Of Two Sisters Gunned Down By Their Mother Was Set To Get Married Two Days Later

Taylor Sheats was supposed to get married on Monday, but instead, the 21-year-old is dead after her mother gunned down both Taylor and her younger sister in a puzzling attack on Friday evening.

Both sisters were killed when their mother, Christy Sheats, reportedly chased them down into the street during an argument and shot both girls to death. Police said 17-year-old Madison Sheats was killed at the scene while Taylor Sheats was rushed to a hospital before dying of her wounds.

Police arrived to find Christy Sheats standing over Madison while still holding a gun and an officer opened fire, killing Christy.

The story gained nationwide attention but now has taken an even more tragic turn. A relative wrote on Monday that Taylor Sheats was set to marry her fiance on Monday.

“Y’all were a part of our family and that will never change,” the relative wrote in a post cited by KTRK-TV. “The greatest in-laws anyone could ever have, and the sweetest, most wholesome and caring girls in my life. I look up to ya’ll so much. Y’all were a light in the midst of this crazy world. We will all love you two until the end of time.”

The killings also sparked controversy due to Christy Sheats’ apparent affinity for guns. Jezebel noted the mother was active on Facebook in advocating for the right to own guns and against gun control, once writing, “It would be horribly tragic if my ability to protect myself or my family were to be taken away, but that’s exactly what Democrats are determined to do by banning semi-automatic handguns.”

Sheats' 2 daughters, 17yo Madison and 22yo Taylor, fled from their mother when she began shooting. She killed them. pic.twitter.com/VAY9kqYR81

— Ryan Adams ????????? (@filmystic) June 28, 2016

New circumstances of the shootings have also come to light on Monday. The New York Daily News reported that Christy Sheats had called a meeting on Friday with her family members but then pulled out a gun and opened fire on her two daughters and her husband, 45-year-old Jason Sheats.

The girls were shot inside the house and managed to flee outside along with their father. Madison collapsed and died outside, while Jason ran to the end of the street to seek help from a neighbor. Christy reportedly chased down Taylor and shot her one more time, then went back into the house to reload her gun before coming back to shoot Taylor yet again.

Neighbors said Jason Sheats was devastated at having both of his daughters and his wife killed on the same day — which, but another tragic twist, happened to be his 45th birthday.

Christy Byrd Sheats murdered her daughters in cold blood. This is some of her FB posts. #GunControlNow #gunviolence pic.twitter.com/VSNmdGtBPP

— Jaye (@BamaJayHayes) June 26, 2016

Some neighbors said they were shocked at the murders, saying the Sheats family seemed to be normal and loving. Austin Enke, who attended school with Madison and lived nearby, told KHOU that there had never been violence in the neighborhood.

“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,” he said.

Christy Sheats herself was seen as a “nice” mother, another neighbor told KHOU. And there were signs that she had a close relationship with both girls. In 2015, she shared a post on Facebook that read, “Happy Daughter’s Day to my two amazing, sweet, kind, beautiful, intelligent girls. I love and treasure you both more than you could ever possibly know.”

But investigators said they had been called to the house a number of times in the past for the disturbances and to check on the mother’s mental health.

Many friends and family members have gone online to express their shock and sadness at the murders, including condolences to the family of Taylor Sheats’ fiance.

[Image via Facebook]