Coppell, TX Mayor Jayne Peters and Daughter Found Dead

By Kamika Dunlap on July 14, 2010 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

Although the circumstances are still unclear police are investigating a possible murder-suicide of a Dallas-area mayor and her teenage daughter.

Authorities discovered the bodies of Coppell, Texas Mayor Jayne Peters, 55, and Corrine Peters, 19, shot to death at their home.

Police were prompted to go to the mayor's home when she failed to arrive at a city council meeting and did not call to explain her absence.

Jayne Peters served as mayor of Coppell, a city of about 40,000 located 15 miles northwest of Dallas. She also worked as a contract software developer. The mayor's husband, Donald Peters, died of cancer in 2008 at the age of 58.

Her daughter, Corinne Peters, was an outstanding student and bound for college at the University of Texas at Austin.

Police found the mayor and her daughter both shot in the head. Officials said the mayor's body was found on the first floor of the residence, while her daughter was located upstairs.

Authorities still have not disclosed a motive for the deaths.

There was no sign of forced entry, according to police. Though the cause of the shootings is unclear, investigators believe the mayor shot her daughter before turning the gun on herself.

Investigators said the mayor left four notes at the home that were a mixture of written and typed letters. They said one posted on the front door, along with a key to the home, warned of the horrors that would be found inside.

Police would not say if there were any signs of struggle between the deceased.

The investigation is not complete, no additional information can be released, officials said.

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