CASHMERE — Autopsy results have confirmed a finding of murder-suicide in the deaths of a mother and daughter discovered dead in their home last Thursday, said Lt. Jerry Moore of the Chelan County Sheriff's Office.

STORY TOOLS

Investigators believe 58-year-old Kathy Minardi shot her 20-year-old daughter, Danielle Minardi, once in the back of the head from close range. Kathy Minardi then shot herself with the same pistol, Moore said.

"We're satisfied that this was a homicide-suicide and that a third person did not commit the crime," said Moore.

No note was found at the scene, he said.

"Without the note, we're trying to resolve the motive," Moore said Tuesday, adding that additional interviews were scheduled with family members.

A relative of the family, Nicholas Forrest, read a statement from the family to a reporter Friday.

"Kathy Minardi was a loving mother and wife struggling with severe depression. She loved her daughter and family very much," the statement read, in part.

No signs of struggle

According to the sheriff's office, the women were found by John Minardi, their husband and father.

Moore said John Minardi was returning home with groceries when he found the women in the living room of the family's home at 7440 Brender Canyon Road, about two miles west of Cashmere.

The women died instantly from the gunshot wounds, Moore said, adding there were no signs of a struggle.

Danielle Minardi "never knew what hit her," he said. Investigators believe she was shot while seated, from a distance of a foot or less. Moore said Danielle Minardi was found with her fingers resting on the keyboard of a laptop computer.

He said investigators have no information about any dispute within the family in recent days. There were no previous reports of domestic violence in the family, Moore said.

The gun used in the shootings belongs to John Minardi, and had been locked in a safe with the key hidden, Moore said. But he said investigators believe Kathy Minardi, a homemaker, found the key to open the safe and retrieve the weapon, a .357-caliber Colt Python.

John and Kathy Minardi were married for 22 years and home-schooled Danielle, said Moore. Danielle had an older brother, Ryan, who was born to Kathy from a previous marriage and later adopted by John Minardi, Moore said. The couple had no other children, according to obituary information.

The family moved to Cashmere about a year and a half ago from San Diego, where John Minardi worked as a sergeant with the San Diego County Sheriff's Department. Moore said Kathy Minardi had family in the Wenatchee area. A month or two ago, Wenatchee police offered John Minardi a job as an officer, which Minardi accepted, said Capt. Rick Murray. The offer is contingent upon completion of further testing, Murray said.

Danielle Minardi attended Wenatchee Valley College in the 2007-08 academic year, said Katie White, communications and alumni coordinator for the college. Danielle Minardi had also registered to attend classes this fall, White said.

Care complaint

Moore said last week that Kathy Minardi had been hospitalized at Central Washington Hospital in Wenatchee for five days this April after taking pills in a suicide attempt.

In their statement, John Minardi and family expressed concern about the lack of psychiatric treatment available to Kathy Minardi.

"She sought professional help but found very little psychiatric care available in Wenatchee," said Forrest, who is married to a niece of Kathy Minardi.

The family declined requests for an interview. A funeral service for both women is scheduled for Monday in East Wenatchee.

In Wenatchee, the nonprofit Columbia Valley Community Health provides mental health services.

A patient at Central Washington Hospital who attempted suicide would be evaluated by a mental health professional from that agency, said Marcy Vixie, director of quality care management for the hospital.

Plans for future mental health services would be set up by that agency, not the hospital, Vixie said.

Charlene Woodward, president of the Chelan-Douglas chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, said the lack of psychiatrists in the area is a problem.

"There is no private-practice psychiatrist in our community," she said. Woodward said she knew of only two full-time psychiatrists working in the area, one of whom works with children. Both are on staff with Columbia Valley Community Health, Woodward said. The facility did not return a call from a reporter seeking information about psychiatric care in the area.

A search of listings for "psychiatrists" at yellowpages.com yielded only one valid Wenatchee listing, for an advanced registered nurse practitioner, not a psychiatrist.

Another psychiatrist recently left Lake Chelan Community Hospital, Woodward said.

A lack of mental health care providers has led Chelan and Douglas counties to be designated as a "health professional shortage area" by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. According to information online, a total of four full-time mental health care providers are needed in the area. Data from an agency Web site states there were three full-time providers in 2005.

The shootings are the second mother-child murder-suicide in recent months in the Wenatchee area. In July, East Wenatchee police said Taunya L. Hilliard shot her 9-year-old son, Spencer Hepko, before shooting herself near the Apple Capital Recreation Loop Trail.

In that case, family members said Hilliard tried — unsuccessfully — to reach her counselor but was unable to do so.

Woodward said the community should be aware of crisis line services offered for local residents. The number for the 24-hour crisis line is (509) 662-7105.

Jaime Adame: 664-7144

adame@wenworld.com