A 49-year-old Texas woman is being held without bond after authorities say she shot and killed her adult daughter during a dispute inside a Dallas home, an incident that unfolded as officers were already responding to a nearby call.
Shanika Battle has been charged with one count of murder in connection with the death of her 28-year-old daughter, Tabatha Jones, according to Dallas County court records. The shooting occurred Monday afternoon at a residence on Green Cove Lane in southwest Dallas, police said.
Officers were dispatched shortly before 4 p.m. after receiving reports of a shooting. An initial police report described the victim and the alleged shooter as “known to one another.” According to an arrest affidavit obtained by local media, Jones herself called 911, telling dispatchers that her mother had shot her in the side.
Because officers were already handling another call roughly a block away, police said they arrived within minutes. They found Jones lying on her bed in her bedroom with a gunshot wound. She was transported to a nearby hospital, where she later died from her injuries.
Investigators said Battle and her daughter were the only people inside the residence at the time. After securing a search warrant, police recovered a pistol from the living room near Battle’s purse, along with a .380-caliber spent cartridge casing in the hallway outside Jones’ bedroom.
During a subsequent interview with investigators, Battle allegedly said her daughter became upset after she took her alcohol. According to the affidavit, Battle told police that Jones then began “going into rooms that aren’t hers,” leading to a verbal argument between the two.
Authorities noted conflicting accounts about whether the dispute escalated into a physical confrontation. Battle did acknowledge owning the firearm found at the scene, police said. She also allegedly told investigators that she removed the gun from her purse to “scare” her daughter but maintained that she did not fire the weapon.
Battle remains detained in the Dallas County Jail without bond as the case proceeds.
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