Mother, daughter charged in murders of 5 family members in Bucks County
MORRISVILLE, Pa. -- Authorities say a mother and daughter have confessed to their involvement in the murders of five family members, including three children, inside their Bucks County home after they alleged everyone involved had been talking about suicide.
Shana Decree, 45, was arraigned on five counts of murder and 1 count of conspiracy charges around 3:30 a.m. Tuesday and is being held without bail. Her 19-year-old daughter Dominique is expected to be arraigned on the same charges later in the day.
The five family members killed have been identified as: Shana Decree's children, Naa'Irah Smith, 25, and Damon Decree Jr., 13, both of Morrisville, Shana's sister, Jamilla Campbell, 42, of Trenton, New Jersey, and Campbell's 9-year-old twin daughters, Imani and Erika Allen.
Police Chief George McClay says the murder scene will go down as one of the worst in Bucks County history and the worst ever in Morrisville.
"We haven't had a shooting for two years. Something like this is heartbreaking to the community," McClay said.
Action News is told Bucks County Children and Youth Social Services Agency performed a welfare check at the Robert Morris Apartments on the 200 block of West Bridge Street on Saturday, but when no one answered, a worker left a card.
According to an affidavit of probable cause, representatives returned to apartment 5S for an unannounced visit around 4 p.m. Monday. After there was no answer, the representative contacted a maintenance worker at the complex.
When the maintenance worker gained access to the apartment, he found two women, identified as Shana and Dominique Decree, in bed. The worker reported that the two seemed disoriented and the apartment was in disarray. Morrisville police were called to the scene and both were taken to the hospital.
Arriving officers saw furniture upended in the apartment, along with broken glass and clutter. The Children and Youth representative told police the apartment was not in disarray during their last visit in early February.
Police initially saw four bodies in a small bedroom. The fifth was later discovered underneath another body.
"This is a terrible tragedy. I just spoke with the family of the five of the deceased and we're all heartbroken," Bucks County District Attorney Matthew Weintraub said during a Monday night press conference.
The affidavit says Shana and Dominique Decree were read their Miranda rights in the emergency room of the hospital and both spoke to police without an attorney present. Both were in separate exam rooms when they were being questioned.
Dominique told police she lived in the home with her mother Shana, her sister Naa'Irah, her 13-year-old brother Damon, her aunt Jamilla Campbell, and Campbell's twin daughters.
Authorities say Dominique had visible injuries to her neck and, at first, denied knowing what happened. She claimed that an unknown male hurt her and she kept repeating she wanted to die.
Shana also first denied knowing what happened, according to police, claiming her sister's boyfriend and two unknown males came into the apartment and killed everyone except her and her daughter.
Dominique separately then echoed claims about her aunt's boyfriend and two unknown males.
The affidavit indicates that later, Shana told police everyone in the apartment, including the 9-year-old twins and 13-year-old, wanted to die and was talking about suicide.
According to the affidavit, Dominique then told police how each person was killed. Dominique said Shana killed one twin, the 13-year-old, and Smith; that Campbell killed the other twin; and she then strangled Campbell.
Police say Shana also gave them an account of who did the killings. Her account varied slightly from her daughter's, saying Dominique helped her with one of the killings and that Campbell killed Smith.
Authorities had been searching for Jamilla Campbell's 17-year-old son, Joshua Campbell, to ensure his safety. They located him Tuesday morning in Willingboro. He is not considered a suspect.
