A Wyoming mother-of-four murdered her three young daughters before shooting herself, leaving one of them in critical condition.
Tranyelle Harshman, 32, shot the four children, ages 2, 7, and 9, before turning the gun on herself, according to the Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office.
The shootings are said to have occurred on Monday at their home in Byron.
Harshman was rushed to a nearby hospital with her 7-year-old daughter, Olivia, but died of self-inflicted injuries, according to local police.
Harshman’s sister Savannah Rose told KTVQ that her sister had shot her daughters and that Olivia is currently being treated and responding to touch.
According to the sheriff’s office, authorities were called to the home after receiving reports of gunshots inside.
A woman made the call, telling officers that ‘her daughters had been shot’ and that she believed her children had died.
A 911 dispatcher was told that the girls were in their cribs, with two of them downstairs in their bedroom.
The woman also told the dispatcher that she could be found in her upstairs bedroom and that she was going to shoot herself.
‘The dispatcher pleaded with the female caller over the phone to stay on the line until responding suits arrived,’ the press release stated.
‘The female caller repeatedly stated that she could not do it and that it was too late. Several attempts to keep her on the line failed, and the call was disconnected.
Officers arrived minutes later to find two young girls, a 2-year-old and a 9-year-old – named Brailey in a fundraiser – dead from gunshot wounds to the heads.
They found the two other children, a 2-year-old and Olivia, who both had gunshot wounds to the head but were still alive.
Harshman was discovered in her bedroom with a gunshot wound to the head, but was still alive when police arrived.
A short time after locating the surviving children, the 2-year-old died of injuries.
Friends of Harshman told the outlet that she had struggled with mental health issues, including postpartum depression.
Briana Baker told the outlet, ‘You never know what someone is going through inside their mind. Tranyelle was not the monster that this tragedy makes her out to be.
‘Her loved ones do not want her to be remembered for her darkest times. She was kind, loving, and funny. Her children were her primary focus in life.
Sage Miears, a former classmate, added: “If she was really battling postpartum depression, that’s a serious thing.” People had to be there for her.
Byron Mayor Allen Clark added, ‘When you’re in a small community like this, everyone knows everyone.
‘It’s simply devastating. I just hope and pray that the family can endure and that better days are ahead.
Harshman has two children with husband Cliff Harshman, the father of the two younger girls, and two older children with her ex-husband, Quinn Blackmer.
A GoFundMe page has since been established to assist Cliff Harshman, Cliff’s widowed husband and father, and as of Wednesday had raised more than $700,000.
A post on the fundraiser reads: ‘Tragedy has struck, leaving us shattered and heartbroken.
‘Cliff Harshman, a devoted husband and father of four beautiful daughters, has experienced an unimaginable loss: the deaths of three of his precious daughters. 1 is still fighting in Salt Lake; please pray for her.
“This devastating event has left Cliff and his loved ones reeling in grief, struggling to come to terms with the enormous void left in their lives.
‘The financial burden of funeral expenses, ongoing family support, and other related costs only exacerbates their grief.’
Blackmer told Cowboy State Daily, ‘I need the world to pray for my baby [Olivia], and I need her to pull through. I don’t have my (older) daughter [Brailey] anymore, so this is all I have left.
A separate GoFundMe page has been set up for Blackmer, and it has already raised more than $34,000.
The fundraiser states that Olivia has suffered a severe traumatic brain injury and is fighting for her life! She is in critical condition, and the next few days will determine her fate.
‘We know Brailey is watching over her baby sister from the other side, encouraging her to fight for her life!’
