A man and his 7-year-old daughter were found shot to death Sunday night in a south side home,and police said it appeared the father shot and killed his daughter before taking his own life.
Kelli Shults' mother went to the girl's father home, located on Frebis Avenue, to pick her up atabout 8:30 p.m. The mother called police when there was no answer at the door, 10TV's Patrick Bellreported.
When police arrived at about 8:45 p.m., they found the bodies of Kelli and her father, KevinShults, in her bedroom. Police said both died from gunshot wounds.
A woman who lived near Kevin Shults said he called his daughter, "the light of his life." Others described him as a father who made his daughter the center of his world, 10TVs' TanishaMallett reported.
Craig Treneff, an attorney who represented Kevin Shults during his divorce from Kelli's motherand the ongoing custody battle, said he never thought Kevin Shults would hurt his daughter.
"The idea that he would harm Kelli was inconceivable to me," Treneff said.
According to Treneff, Kevin Shults was going though a tough divorce, but he said custodyhearings were moving in a favorable direction.
Before the bodies were discovered Sunday night, Kevin Shults' fiance told a 911 dispatcher thatsomething was wrong.
"He either ran away with his daughter; he was afraid of losing her," the woman said, "Orthey're inside and something's wrong."
According to his fiance, Shults had previously talked about taking his daughter's life, as wellas his own.
"About five months ago, the first fight where he got mad at me, he threatened if I left him thathe would hurt himself and her," the woman said.
Police on Monday were still trying to determine what prompted the shootings.
Rev. Jeremy Scott, who lives in the neighborhood, said he could not believe that such violencecould happen there, Bell reported.
"What does this say about the rest of us that lived next door and weren't aware of what wasgoing on?" Scott said. "Certainly we have to pray for the rest of the family and for those who aregoing to be touched by this act."
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