No Outward Signs Byron Mom Suspected Of Shooting Kids Was Struggling, Neighbors Say

BYRON — Larry Foster couldn’t walk past his neighbor’s house Tuesday without crying.

His next-door neighbor Tranyelle Harshman seemed happy raising four young children with her husband, Foster told Cowboy State Daily at his home in Byron, Wyoming. 

The children ranged in age from 2 to 9. They’d play outside, they’d pet Foster’s dogs. 

Harshman seemed to lead a clean and content life. Foster remembered her as average of height and build, with sandy-brown hair. 

On Monday at 1:29 p.m., Harshman called 911 to say her children had been shot and were in different rooms throughout her house at 239 East Shoshone Ave.

The dispatcher tried to calm Harshman and keep her on the phone, but Harshman kept saying she couldn’t stay on the phone, and that it was “too late,” according to a statement the Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office issued Tuesday. 

Law enforcement agents rushed to the home to find all four children shot in the head. Two were dead on scene, another died moments after deputies’ arrival. A fourth was alive and flown away to get emergency care. 

The evidence indicates the shootings were a murder-suicide, Sheriff Ken Blackburn confirmed to Cowboy State Daily in a meeting Tuesday in Cowley, about 8 miles north of Byron. 

As of Tuesday evening, a 7-year-old girl who was one of the four shot was in critical but stable condition after pulling through a surgery. Her family was “cautiously optimistic,” said Blackburn.

Harshman died Tuesday afternoon.

Law enforcement agents were still investigating Tuesday, and Blackburn said there are signs of “depression and other very personal struggles” in this tragedy. 

For Foster, there’s no rational explanation for what happened in the house next to his. The Harshmans had lived in that home for about a year. Tranyelle Harshman appeared to be a stay-at-home mom, and there were no outward signs she was struggling, at least not to Foster. 

“I wish I had known something was going on. I could have done something about it,” he said, tearfully. “Terrible. F***ing terrible.”  

‘Nightmare’

When Harshman called 911, she said her children had been shot but didn’t admit to shooting them, Blackburn recalled during his Tuesday interview. 

Harshman told the dispatcher that responders could find her upstairs. She also told them the rooms in which the four shot children lay.

Since the dispatcher had been talking with Harshman seconds before agents arrived, the law-enforcement responders had no idea if they were walking into a dangerous scene. 

Agents did a tactical entry into the home. Those included Wyoming Highway Patrol troopers, a Big Horn County sergeant and deputy, and Blackburn. 

The scene was a “nightmare,” according to a statement the sheriff had released Tuesday. 

Big Horn County Sheriff’s Sgt. Jeffrey Angell was the first agent to enter the home and was instrumental in the tactical clearance, said the sheriff. 

“It’s something that’ll be stuck in my mind for the rest of my life,” said Angell, who was tearful. “I see my grandkids.”

Angell’s wife, Deputy Keri Angell, was on scene as well. She agreed: their family came instantly to mind. 

The pair returned home at about 3 a.m. Jeff Angell said he didn’t sleep. They were both out of bed early, dealing with the aftermath of the scene, even caring for the Harshman family’s ducks and other animals. 

“A lot of these deputies have gone above and beyond,” said Blackburn. 

People are prone to complain about law enforcement personnel, which can be called-for on some occasions, he said. 

But people also take for granted all the good they do, he added. 

“I saw a lot of brave men and women running into that nightmare, where most people would have cowered and run away from it,” he said. “And I think the conscience that is shocked in our state today as a result of this brings home the fact that these (tragedies) are real and they’re coming to Wyoming more often, and we need to unite as a state and as a community… Maybe tell an officer in your jurisdiction thank you.” 

Blackburn expressed gratitude for agencies across Wyoming, which have offered to help fill in as Big Horn County personnel need.

‘Not A Good Feeling’

Gary Williams lived in the Harshmans’ home for 50 years before he sold it to them just over a year ago and moved into a house down the road, he told Cowboy State Daily on Friday.

He didn’t know the family well, he said Tuesday as he bottle fed a calf on his ranch. Geese honked overhead. The air was frigid.

Knowing the shooting happened in what was his home of 50 years left “not a good feeling,” he said. “But what happened, who knows.” 

Cleaning crews remained at the home all day Tuesday. 

Another neighbor who asked Cowboy State Daily not to use her name, said she’s concerned for Harshman’s husband, who is alive. She wept during her interview, saying she’s also saddened and concerned for the first responders and medical personnel who have been dealing with the tragedy. 

Like Foster, the neighbor woman said she wished she’d known Harshman was in turmoil – she would have tried to help. 

This incident prompted her to check on her grandbabies, she added. 

‘Heartbroken’

Gov. Mark Gordon released a Tuesday statement on the tragedy.

“Jennie and I are heartbroken by the loss of innocent children’s lives in Byron yesterday,” Gordon wrote. “Our hearts and prayers go out to the family of the victims, first responders and the entire Byron community, who are all impacted by this tragedy.”

Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.