A mother and an adult daughter accused of killing 5 members of their family



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A mother and her adult daughter killed five of their loved ones, including three children, and were found "disoriented" after the child protection authorities arrived for a surprise visit to their destroyed apartment near Philadelphia. , police and prosecutors said Tuesday.

Shana Decree, 45, and her daughter, Dominique Decree, 19, have been charged with five counts of homicide and one count of conspiracy. The motive and the manner in which the five family members are dead is not clear; their bodies were found Monday night.

"As confusing as it was last night, we are no closer to understanding this in the harsh light of day," Bucks County District Attorney Matthew Weintraub said Tuesday at a news conference . "We will continue to search all leads and bring the case to an end."

The victims were Shana's children, Naa 'Irah Smith, 25, and Damon Decree Jr., 13, both of Morrisville; Shana Decree's sister Jamilla Campbell of Trenton, New Jersey; and 9-year-old twin girls from Campbell, Imani and Erika Allen.

Authorities discovered the scene after a Bucks County Child Welfare Officer arrived Monday night for an unannounced visit. A worker from the apartment let him enter the building, according to court documents.

Police said they found Shana and Dominique Decree "disoriented" inside the apartment, where furniture had been flipped over, cracked drywall and glass lying nearby. The police initially said they found four bodies, but a fifth under another next to a bed.

The mother and daughter were taken to the hospital and first told the authorities that they did not know what had happened.

Before speaking to the authorities about their involvement in the killings, the Shana decree announced that her sister Jamilla's boyfriend and two strangers had killed the five family members, but had left Shana and Dominique alive, according to an affidavit.

The Shana decree then told the police that "everyone in the apartment … wanted to die" and talked about suicide, according to court documents. She recounted that she had killed one of the victims, that she and her daughter Dominque had killed another one, and that Campbell had killed two more victims before she herself was killed. by Dominique.

The Shana decree was arrested early Tuesday, and that of the decree Dominique was to be returned later in the day. It is not clear whether one or the other woman has a lawyer to speak on her behalf.

Authorities looking for Campbell's 17-year-old son, Joshua, found him in Willingboro, New Jersey, where he was staying with friends, police chief George McClay said.

Weintraub stressed that the teenager was not a suspect, claiming that the authorities simply wanted to ensure his safety.

The apartments are located in Morrisville, on the banks of the Delaware River, northeast of Philadelphia and across from Trenton, New Jersey. This three-story red brick apartment complex sits on a busy road, lined with auto repair shops, a secure local store and a surety bond agency. deposit nearby.

Thai Hall, 24, of Bristol, Pennsylvania, said she attended Morrisville High School with Smith and spoke with her about three months ago. Hall, whose mother lives in a nearby apartment, said Smith attended a cosmetology school. She remembered Smith warmly.

"She was a happy person, a happy person and took care of people," Hall said.

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This story was corrected to show that Jamilla Campbell was 42 years old, not 45 years old.

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