05102015 - News Article - Cops: Mother killed in murder-suicide

Cops: Mother killed in murder-suicide
NWI Times
May 10, 2015
http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/porter/cops-mother-killed-in-murder-suicide/article_4a2137ec-91f5-53b7-a63c-9a3c0f3b5914.html

MORGAN TOWNSHIP | A Morgan Township man shot and killed his wife and fatally shot himself in their home late Saturday, authorities said.

Porter County Sheriff's Department officers found Glenn Ballor, 38, and Brianna Ballor, 31, dead from apparent gunshot wounds after responding at 11:52 p.m. to a home in the 100 block of South County Road 75 East for a report of a shooting.

An investigation indicated a "domestic situation" occurred before Glenn Ballor shot his wife with a shotgun and then turned the gun on himself, according to the Porter County Sheriff's Department.

The Ballors' 2-year-old daughter was in the house at the time but was not injured, investigators said.

Brianna Ballor's mother, Beth Hefner, said her daughter was a kind, loving woman who was dedicated to her young daughter.

"She was really working very hard at being a good mother," Beth Hefner said.

Brianna Ballor was valedictorian of her class at Morgan Township High School and earned her bachelor's degree at Purdue University in 3.5 years. She worked for the Porter County Juvenile Detention Center, Hefner said.

Brianna Ballor also loved to run and completed the Chicago Marathon in 2011.

Hefner said her daughter called her asking for help late Saturday and the phone went dead as they talked. Hefner then got Glenn Ballor on the phone, and he told her to come get her granddaughter, she said.


When she arrived at the home, she found her granddaughter sitting on the couch and heard a gunshot, she said.

Porter County Coroner Chuck Harris said both bodies were found in a bedroom lying next to each other on the floor. Evidence indicated there was a physical fight before Brianna Ballor was shot, he said.

The child was released to a family member at the scene, police said.

The Ballors were going through a divorce, but Glenn Ballor had not moved out of the house, Hefner said.

Funeral services of Brianna Ballor are pending, she said.

Police had never been called to the home in the past for domestic violence issues, Porter County Sheriff's Department spokesman Sgt. Larry LaFlower said.

Glenn Ballor wrestled for Portage in the 1990s and more recently served for a brief period as an assistant wrestling coach at Portage High School. He left the position about two years ago.

Ballor previously had been arrested on burglary, theft and driving while suspended charges, LaFlower said.

Harris said toxicology testing will be done to determine if drugs or alcohol played any role in the deaths.