Dawn Taylor, a 38-year-old woman from Roanoke Rapids, NC, tragically lost her life on April 24, 2009, in a murder-suicide incident. The incident occurred outside a daycare center on Franklin Street. Dawn Taylor was picking up a young child from the daycare when her ex-boyfriend, Lavern Bradley Jr., 39, approached her. Bradley shot Taylor three times before turning the gun on himself and committing suicide.
Both Taylor and Bradley were found lying in the street, with Taylor being rushed to Halifax Regional Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
The murder-suicide was described as a domestic situation by the Roanoke Rapids Police Chief, Jeff Hinton. The relationship between Taylor and Bradley had ended, and the incident was a result of this domestic dispute. The police could not comment on the child's relationship to either adult involved in the incident.
There were no arrests or litigations related to Dawn Taylor's death, as the perpetrator, Lavern Bradley Jr., also died at the scene. The case was closed as a murder-suicide, and no further investigations or legal actions were pursued.
