Sole surviving daughter of Wyoming murder-suicide dies in hospital

BYRON, Wyoming — A 7-year-old girl who has been hospitalized since being shot in the head nearly a week ago has died.

Olivia Blackmer and her three sisters were shot by their mother, Tranyelle Harshman, in their Byron, Wyoming, home Feb. 10 before Harshman turned the gun on herself, according to the Big Horn County Sheriff's Office. Brailey, 9, Brooke, who was almost 3, and Jordan Blackmer, 2, all died at the scene.

Olivia survived and was flown to Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake City where she passed away Saturday afternoon.

"Olivia is with her sisters now. She gained her angel wings yesterday at 3:44 p.m.," Olivia's stepmother, Katelynn Blackmer, wrote on a GoFundMe* page Sunday. "She fought so, so hard up til the last minute! Her body and her brain had been through too much. Medication helped but we reached a point where medical options were exhausted and her body only continued to get worse."

Blackmer said Olivia "kept fighting through until her heart stopped" and the family is grateful she hung on for five days so they could spend valuable time with her.

"We want to thank each and every one of you for your prayers and support for our family," Blakmer wrote. "This is going to be extremely hard, please keep our family in your prayers as we figure out how to grieve this horrific tragedy day to day."

Dispatchers received a call around 1:30 p.m. Feb. 10 from a woman who "reported her daughters had been shot," and she believed them to be dead, according to a news release from the Big Horn County Sheriff's Office.

Harshman, 32, told dispatchers that two of her children would be found upstairs in their cribs, and the other two could be found downstairs in their shared bedroom.

She reportedly told police she would be found in her upstairs bedroom, and she was going to shoot herself, according to the release.

"The dispatcher pleaded with the female caller over the phone for the female caller to remain on the line until responding units arrive," the release says. "The female caller stated multiple times that she could not do that and that it was too late."

Funeral details are pending, according to the GoFundMe page. The biological father and stepmother of the two older children live in Utah. Two fundraising campaigns have been created for the Utah and Wyoming families of the girls.

*KSL.com does not assure that the money deposited to the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account, you should consult your own advisers and otherwise proceed at your own risk.

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