A mother of five killed by her ex-boyfriend in a murder-suicide died trying to protect her children, according to grieving family members.
Xavier Harrison, 30, allegedly shot Danielle Rivera, 40, in front of her 16-year-old daughter outside of an abandoned American Legion post in southern Illinois and then he turned the gun on himself just before midnight Saturday, KSDK reported.
Police in Cahokia Heights said the pair were in a relationship, however Rivera’s loved ones insist the two had a history but were not dating.
They claim Harrison had been harassing her for years.
Rivera’s family believe she agreed to meet Harrison that night because she wanted to protect her children and mother, who lived with her.
“The only way I can best describe it is if she didn’t go and pick him up, then he would’ve probably gone to her residence, and there would have been a lot more harm and tragedy than what occurred in that car,” Teresa Fiudo told KSDK.
“We lost her,” Fiudo said.
“But she died protecting her kids. She did what any mother would do.”
“She basically put her life out there to save ours,” Rivera’s mother, Karen Rivera, said.
Rivera’s 16-year-old daughter witnessed the shooting “ran for her life” and called 911, according to Rivera’s niece, Aubrey Rivera.
The slain mother previously obtained an order of protection against Harrison in March, but that order was dismissed weeks later in April, according to court documents reviewed by KSDK.
And just last month, another woman obtained an order of protection against Harrison.
A third woman had one against him in 2019, records show.
Harrison, of Belleville, had previously threatened to kill Rivera and members of her family at her home, leaving Rivera fearful for their safety, according to her family.
Rivera’s sisters estimate that over the past few years, there were 50 domestic violence calls against Harrison at two of her homes in Belleville, Ill., just across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, Mo.
Details about what led Rivera and Harrison to be together before the shooting were not immediately clear.
The Post has reached out to the Cahokia Heights Police Department for additional information.
Family members said Rivera was the sole provider for her five children and her mother, working long, 12-hour hours to support them.
“She loved her kids with her whole heart,” Fiudo said.
“There wasn’t anything she wouldn’t do for them.”
Rivera’s mother, Karen, will help raise her daughter’s five children, her family said.
In the viral moment that has since drawn national attention, Rivera met Harrison at the abandoned American Legion post in Cahokia Heights late Saturday night. Her 16-year-old daughter accompanied her to the meeting. Harrison opened fire on Rivera in front of the teen, then fatally shot himself. The daughter fled the scene and called emergency services.
The murder-suicide has sparked outrage over the dismissed protective order and Harrison’s documented history of domestic violence.