Shooters targeting brother kill sleeping 20-year-old with disabilities, Texas cops say

A 20-year-old woman with cerebral palsy was shot and killed while sleeping in her family’s Texas home on Sunday, according to police.

But police say Sierra Rhodd was not the intended target in the fatal shooting, which occurred late Sunday night in Harris County near Houston, KHOU reported. She was in her bedroom when shooters opened fire on the house, according to the TV station.

Dozens of shots were fired into the home, according to KTRK. No one else was injured.

Her 15-year-old brother was likely the intended target in a retaliation plan “due to an ongoing feud with several individuals,” Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said.

“It wasn’t a typical drive-by when you shoot out the window,” Harris County Sgt. Greg Pinkins said, according to the Houston Chronicle. “It was a situation where it appears these individuals got out of the vehicles and shot at the house.”

Rhodd’s mother said they have called police between 15 and 17 times since March to complain about threats their son has received, KTRK reported.

Police say the shooters left the area when the brother began shooting back at the assailants, KHOU reported. They left in two vehicles,abandoning a motorcycle, according to the Chronicle.

An 18-year-old woman, Emma Presler, has been charged with the murder of Sierra Rhodd, Gonzalez tweeted Monday night. The investigation remains ongoing and more arrests are possible.

Rhodd lived with her parents and just started a business making and selling air fresheners, according to a KTRK reporter.

“She never hurt anybody,” Sierra’s father, Michael Rhodd, told the Chronicle. “She was always worried how everybody else felt.”

This story was originally published September 15, 2020 at 11:44 AM.