Nov 1, 2009 11:30 am US/Central
Mother, Daughter Found Dead In Gary Home
GARY, Ind. (CBS) ―
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Lillie Miller, 79, and her daughter Doressa Miller, 59, were found dead in their Gary home.
CBS
The grandmother of a Gary police officer is one of two women found dead inside a Gary home Friday night. Police say someone killed 79-year-old Lillie Miller and her daughter, 59-year-old Doressa Miller, and left their bodies inside their home in the 700 block of Tyler Street.
Fewer than 24 hours later, police were questioning a person of interest. CBS 2's Pamela Jones spent time with the family and neighbors.
Bernice Williamson is the daughter of Lillie Miller and the sister of Doressa Miller.
"I am puzzled. Because I wonder how in the world did they get in the house? It must have been somebody my sister knew and trusted, or either maybe he had somebody come to the door and he pushed the person in. I just don't know," said Bernice Williamson.
Doressa Miller's daughter found the bodies.
"I just want my mom. That's it. I just want my mom. That's all," she said.
Her cries were all neighbors could hear just before 9 p.m. Friday.
"She said, 'my mother, my grandmother, they're dead. They're in the tub. They're dead.' And she just started screaming and hollering," said neighbor Jackie Murphy.
They say they remember Lillie Miller as a neighbor who kept her yard as neat as a pin and fought to improve her community.
"The Miller family, they were some loving people. They didn't bother anyone. All you see is her taking care of a beautiful lawn and speak to the kids and say hi and everything," said neighbor Faye Clark.
But the case is just the latest in a string of crimes at the home.
"Someone burned down her garage and they set my sister's truck and her daughter's car on fire. And we felt like somebody was trying to do something to them then," said Williamson.
Family friend Bunnie Flemming said someone also slashed the tires of one of the cars.
"She had tires slashed in the last few months over the summer so she started parking her car in the garage after that," Flemming said.
Police worked all night and returned to the scene Saturday looking for clues. They're investigating just how well the killer knew the family.
Community activists prayed outside the home for a family hoping for answers soon.
"It's sad. It's really sad because I'll never see my mom and my sister again. And it's hard. It's real hard," said Williamson.
She says her sister was looking forward to retiring from the insurance industry in just three years. She and her sister worked together at Blue Cross/Blue Shield and were very close.
The Lake County Indiana Coroner's office says both victims died of asphyxia caused by compression. That can happen any number of ways, including strangulation or suffocation.
Gary Police say that although they have a person of interest, they need the community to step up and give them more leads.
Detective James Bond and Sergeant Mark Davis are working on the case. If you have any information, please call (219) 881-4751.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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