Inside one family home in the Berks County town of Sinking Spring, about 70 miles north of Philadelphia, authorities found five family members dead. The cause of their death had been from gunshot wounds.
The Berks County District Attorney's Office identified the victims 40-year-old Mark Short, his wife, 33-year-old Megan, and their children, namely Lianna (8), Mark Jr. (5), and Willow (2).
Officials said that the family dog had also been killed.
“Police discovered a handgun near one of the deceased adults,” The Inquirer Daily News said in a report. “A handwritten ‘murder-suicide’ note was also found in the home.”
According to officials, their investigation led them to the knowledge that there may have been domestic issues between Mark and Megan.
In fact, in a Reading Eagle, Megan allegedly posted on Facebook that her husband had been abusive, and in fact had plans to leave him.
Meanwhile, according to Mark’s relatives living in Folcroft, Delaware County, he had been a laid-back guy who would do anything to save his marriage and family.
"He was just a really good guy. You wouldn't think he would do this kind of thing, but in the situation he's in right now, you never can tell with people," James Short said of his cousin.
In fact, Mark tried to repair his marriage a couple of times, but despite his efforts, Megan still wanted to leave.
“The family struggled with serious health issues in their youngest child, Willow, who was born with a congenital heart defect that required her to have a heart transplant when she was just days old,” said an NBC report.
On the website Philly at Heart blog, Megan admitted to suffering from post traumatic stress disorder and anxiety due to her youngest child’s condition.
"There are very few moments when you can clearly see your life as separated into the before and after," Megan Short wrote. "Having a child born with a severe congenital heart defect has been the most significant shift of my life."
The police hasn't yet released information about who fired the shots that killed the family.
The authorities were only alerted of the family’s demise when Megan failed to show up on a lunch date with a friend.
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