Taylor Giles
October 22, 2021
-Daily Caller
An Illinois mother was reportedly struck by a stray bullet Sunday night while reading the Bible to her young daughter.
Melanie Yates died at the hospital Monday in Zion, Illinois, according to Fox 32. Yates was 23 years old.
HEARTBREAKING: 23-year-old Melanie Yates was inside her suburban home Sunday night reading the Bible to her 7-month-old daughter when she was struck by a stray bullet. She later died at the hospital. https://t.co/nSsV9OOXpt
— FOX 32 News (@fox32news) October 22, 2021
“You totally transformed the lives of my son-in-law and my granddaughters. They will never know their mother again. It’s heartbreaking because she wasn’t out and about, she was in her own home,” said Yates’ mother, Lam Calderon, according to Fox 32.
Area residents reported hearing at least six gunshots in the area at the time of the shooting, Fox 32 reported. Multiple shell casings were also found in the area.
“For my daughter to be shot in the head, she’s reading the Bible to her youngest 7-month-old daughter, getting ready for bed. It’s unreal. We couldn’t even believe it,” Calderon said.
Police reportedly don’t believe Yates was the intended target.
“We have the hope and the assurance that she is in heaven right now with Jesus and one day we will see her again,” Calderon said, according to ABC 7. “That’s what we’re holding onto.”
The city of Zion, which is around 40 miles north of Chicago, was named after Zion in Israel.
The Daily Caller reached out to the Zion Police Department for comment, but they did not immediately respond.
