15-year-old girl victim of homicide at Arlington home; 51-year-old woman also found dead
A 15-year-old girl has been identified as the victim who was fatally shot in an Arlington home that firefighters found burning Thursday evening. authorities said Friday.
The girl was Mattie Kay Prescott, who died Thursday in an emergency room at a local hospital, according to the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office website.
The teen was pronounced dead at 6:27 p.m. Thursday from a gunshot wound to the head, and her death was ruled a homicide.
The body of a 51-year-old woman with an apparent gunshot wound also was found in the home, Arlington police said, but authorities have not publicly identified her. Police have not commented on whether the woman is believed to have killed herself, but did say they are not searching for any suspects in connection with the deaths and don’t believe there’s any ongoing threat to the public.
The woman was a relative of Mattie Prescott, Arlington police said Friday. The Medical Examiner’s Office will release the woman’s name and determine her official cause and manner of death.
“Once she has been publicly identified, the department can provide more specific information about their relationship,” police said in a statement Friday.
Arlington police said officers responded to a call about a possible suicidal person at the home just before 5:30 p.m. Thursday in the 600 block of East Lynn Creek Drive.
Minutes later, a fire erupted at the home and Arlington firefighters responded to the scene, extinguishing the blaze.
Firefighters entered the home and found a girl with an apparent gunshot wound. The girl, who was later identified as Mattie Prescott, was taken to the nearby hospital where she was pronounced dead.
As a search continued in the home, crews found the 51-year-old woman, who was pronounced dead at the scene. The investigation continued Friday.
Layla Z., who did want to give her last name, lives next door and was told to vacate her house for a while because of the smoke. She said Friday that she is in shock and the situation is really hard for the neighborhood.
She said Mattie lived in the house with her mother and that they were both beautiful people. Mattie had recently won a volleyball tournament and her mother was active in the community and seemed like a good mother, the neighbor said.
Layla, who said she knew the family well, added that Mattie’s mother was a “kind, sweet person” but had recently been struggling with depression.
Another neighbor, Brenda Zamarripa, said she didn’t know the family well but would say hello to them when she saw them outside. Zamarripa saw the smoke when she came home Thursday evening.
Staff writer Harriet Ramos contributed to this report.
This story was originally published November 11, 2022 at 12:01 PM.
