A grieving father from Wyoming shared the tragic moment when his daughter frantically called him for help just minutes before she was allegedly killed by her ex-boyfriend.
Twenty-year-old Macey Dawn Bradshaw lost her life on December 16 after a confrontation with her former partner, as reported by her family.
Macey’s fear escalated when she reportedly spotted James Hunter, 22, lurking outside her apartment in Lyman.
While on his way to work, her father, Justin Bradshaw, received a desperate call from his daughter, pleading for assistance. He recounted the harrowing experience to Cowboy State Daily.
“She called at 11 o’clock and said, ‘Dad, he’s outside, and I need you to scare him away,'” Justin recalled.
Overcome with urgency, the heartbroken father turned his car around and reached her apartment in just four minutes. Tragically, he heard gunfire before he could enter the building.
‘I reached down to open the door, and I heard the two gunshots go off, back-to-back. I actually heard his body fall to the floor,’ he said.
Bradshaw claimed he found Bradshaw and her ex-boyfriend lying on the floor with bullet wounds to both of their heads.
Macey Dawn Bradshaw, 20, was killed on December 16 in an alleged murder-suicide, according to her family
Her father, Justin Bradshaw (center), said Macey called him on the day she died to tell him she spotted her ex-boyfriend outside of her apartment
‘She was still alert, still awake, and she asked me to help her,’ he said. ‘She said, “Dad, I’m gonna be sick. I’m gonna throw up. I need to get on the floor.”
‘She had a visible look of pain and agony on her face, but she was still there with me, and she talked to me. I think she found a little bit of peace knowing that I was there to help her.’
Officers from the Lyman Police Department were called to the scene of a shooting and found Bradshaw and Hunter critically injured.
The former couple later succumbed to their injuries. Bradshaw’s family have since claimed the two were in an abusive relationship and that their daughter was killed in a murder-suicide.
Bradshaw’s family alleged that first responders found duct tape and zip ties on Hunter’s person.
‘I think James had malicious intent beyond just taking her life. But the timing was so quick – I was there within minutes of when he broke into her house – he didn’t have time to do anything else,’ her father said.
‘At times, that kid was happy and had a good heart and had nothing but genuine love and intent for Macey. But that was not the person I saw that day. The evilness of the world got him.’
Bradshaw’s sister, Taylor Bradshaw, told Cowboy State Daily that her sister told her she was afraid Hunter would kill her just a month before she died.
Police identified Bradshaw (pictured) and 22-year-old James Hunter as the victims, but have not confirmed if it is a murder-suicide
Bradshaw’s family said that she had dated Hunter since they were in high school and the relationship had been abusive
‘About a month ago, Macey said to me, “I wouldn’t be surprised if James killed me, and then killed himself.” I never thought it would actually happen,’ she said.
Taylor explained that they met as children and started dating in high school.
He graduated two years before Bradshaw, so she went to live with him and his family, and that is when the alleged abuse began.
Eventually they broke up, and Bradshaw moved back to her hometown in June 2025 and got her own apartment, car and a waitressing job.
The couple briefly rekindled their romance, but Hunter allegedly struggled with his mental health, and one of Bradshaw’s friends told Cowboy State Daily he made her a bizarre ‘blood painting’ before they broke up again.
Her father claimed Hunter had started stalking her in the months before her death, and Bradshaw was terrified of him.
‘She’d call me having a panic attack, because he would not stop texting her, he wouldn’t stop blowing up her phone, he wouldn’t stop coming around. James just wouldn’t let go,’ Bradshaw said.
In the department’s December 18 update on the case, police said the investigation is ongoing and have not disclosed many details.
Bradshaw’s family launched a nonprofit, A New Dawn, to provide mental health resources for young women in her honor.
Daily Mail contacted Lyman police and the Bradshaw family for comment.
