Kennedale PD: Marital problems led to murder-suicide

Kennedale police say marital problems caused a man to kill his wife and then himself Tuesday afternoon.

James and Amy Short had three children. But friends and neighbors say, if there was trouble in the relationship, they didn't see the signs.

The couple had a 22-year-old son, an 18-year-old son and a 12-year-old daughter.

The oldest son, Zakk, posted on Facebook, “Yesterday was indefinitely the most difficult day of my life... I had to break the heart of a 12-year-old girl that two of the best friends that she knew involved themselves in selfish actions that left us alone."

Police say right before the killings, James called his mother who then called her grandson, Zakk.

Zakk rushed to the family's Kennedale home and got there at the same time as police. He told officers there had been a shooting, and handed investigators his house key. Police found his parents' bodies in the dining room next to a gun and a note. They did not talk about details of the note, other than it was about marriage problems.

Loretta Reilly lived three doors down from the family in Arlington. The Shorts had just moved. Amy was a nurse. Reilly would see her come home from the graveyard shift to take her daughter to school.

James was a radiologist who once coached his son's football team. Neighbors also watched him play basketball with his sons.

“I never saw anything. They just seemed respectful to each other, too,” said Reilly. “I just, I can't believe what you just told me."

The children are now with family who live in the DFW area.