Police investigating deaths of father, two children near Zionsville as double murder-suicide

An unfathomable tragedy unfolded Friday morning after Stephanie Reece received a phone call from Zionsville schools. Her two children were absent from school.

Reece and her ex-husband, Michael Hunn, shared custody of their two children, Harrison, 15, and Shelby, 13. This week was a regularly scheduled visitation with their father.

Reece called Hunn and her children, but no one answered, so she drove to Hunn's home on County Road 900 East, an area northeast of Northfield in rural Boone County. When no one answered the door, she called 911.

Boone County Sheriff's deputies arrived and entered the home. Inside, they found Hunn, 50, dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. The two children also had been killed, likely shot while sleeping in their bedrooms.

Boone County Sheriff Mike Nielsen described that sequence of events during a news conference held Friday afternoon in the aftermath of what authorities believe is a double-murder suicide.

The children were students in Zionsville Community Schools, Harrison at Zionsville Community High School and Shelby at Zionsville Middle School. 

Nielsen said the investigation is ongoing and they do not yet know of a motive.

Documents obtained by IndyStar show Reece and Hunn had been married for about 17 years, before divorcing in November 2017. Nielsen did not characterize their divorce as contentious, though court documents show ongoing issues between them after the settlement was filed.

Reece had been concerned about Hunn's behavior around the children, and requested that his time with them be reduced and possibly monitored with a blood alcohol level monitoring device, according to a petition filed in December in Boone County Superior Court.

The petition says the children told their grandmother that their father had been drinking and wasn't able to care for them or drive them to events. As a result, the children had to be removed from the home, the document states.

A mediation agreement filed in April suggests Reece and Hunn resolved the issues. The document says Hunn agreed to use a mobile breathalyzer system and ensure the results were immediately sent to Reece for a period of 120 days. He also agreed to pay weekly child support, the document states.

But the legal battle continued throughout the summer, documents show.

In July, Reece's attorney emailed Hunn's lawyer over past due child support payments, according to documents filed ilast month. Another email said Hunn had not yet paid a Metropolitan Transportation Authority toll ticket that he'd agreed to pay in April. MTA is a New York-based public transportation agency that services New York City, Long Island and Connecticut. 

On Aug. 7, Reece filed a petition to hold Hunn in contempt of court for failure to pay child support, extracurricular expenses and the MTA toll ticket, documents show. The petition was set for a hearing. That hearing was scheduled for next week.

Earlier this month, Hunn's attorney filed a motion to withdraw from appearing at the Sept. 28 hearing due to "irretrievable breakdown in communication."

Sheriff Nielsen said Friday he wasn't aware of any violent activity by Hunn in the past.

Stephanie Reece is a member of the Indiana University Athletics Hall of Fame in tennis. She is the girls' tennis coach at Zionsville High.

"Our entire school community grieves the loss of two students due to a tragedy at their home," Zionsville Community Schools Superintendent Scott Robison said in an email Friday to parents.

Counselors were made available Friday and will again be available Monday for students at both schools, Robison said.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of the children whose lives were lost, and we ask that you join us in respecting their family time to grieve."

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