A wounded woman survived the first shooting before officers found two children and their mother dead nearby.
GLENDALE, Ariz. — A late-night shooting outside a Glendale bar led police to a Phoenix home where two children and their mother were found dead in an apparent murder-suicide, authorities said.
The case began as a parking lot shooting and quickly became a child death investigation across city lines. Police said Andrea Clarice Davis, 38, fired at her husband and another woman outside Tailgaters Sports Bar & Grill shortly after midnight May 25, then went to a nearby home where she killed her two children and herself.
Glendale officers were called to the bar in the 6000 block of West Bell Road after reports of gunfire. They found a 36-year-old woman with a gunshot wound to the back of her head. She was taken to a hospital and was expected to survive. A 39-year-old man at the scene, later identified in reports as Nolan Davis, told police his wife had come to the bar and shot at him and the woman before leaving. Jose Santiago, a Glendale police spokesperson, said officers were still handling that scene when the case took a turn.
Nolan Davis began receiving text messages from Andrea Davis while officers were with him, police said. The messages said she was going to harm their children. One message included a photo showing a child bleeding from the head, according to police. The father told officers the children were at a nearby home in Phoenix. The information pushed officers to request a response there, while Glendale police continued securing the bar scene and tending to the wounded woman.
At the Phoenix home, officers forced entry because they believed the children were in danger. Inside, police found Andrea Davis dead along with Austin Davis, 10, and Andolan Davis, 18 months. All three had apparent gunshot wounds, police said. Phoenix police said investigators believe Andrea Davis shot both children before turning the gun on herself. A handgun was recovered from the home during a search warrant. Officials have not released the full search warrant return or the exact location of the gun inside the residence.
The two scenes gave investigators different tasks. In Glendale, police had to document where gunfire started, where the wounded woman was struck and how Andrea Davis left the area. In Phoenix, investigators had to process the home as a death scene involving children and the suspected shooter. Authorities said the woman wounded at the bar and Nolan Davis knew each other, but the exact nature of their relationship remained under investigation. No police statement has accused Nolan Davis of a crime.
Police said they had no record of prior domestic violence calls at the family’s residence. That detail became part of the public account because officials said major incidents sometimes happen without earlier reports to police. Phoenix Sgt. Lorraine Fernandez said the deaths had a deep effect on officers and families connected to the case. “No one wants to see harm caused to children,” Fernandez said. She said the scene was difficult for first responders and for relatives on both sides of the family.
Friends described a family under strain before the shootings. Amy Bowers, who knew Andrea Davis for years, said Davis had been upset over an alleged relationship involving her husband and a co-worker. Bowers said Davis had been asking for help and had worried about the future of the children if the couple separated. Police have not said whether they found a written note or other statement explaining Davis’ actions. They also have not said whether the children had any chance to escape or whether anyone else was inside the home.
The death investigation now turns on records rather than a future prosecution. Since Andrea Davis died, detectives cannot present a case against her in court. Instead, police will use the investigation to close the official record, determine the sequence of events and document the evidence. That evidence may include phone data, the text messages sent to Nolan Davis, ballistics work, the recovered handgun, witness interviews from Tailgaters and medical examiner reports for Andrea Davis and the two children.
The bar remained important because it was the first known public act of violence that night. Police said Andrea Davis had driven to the bar area, opened fire and fled. The wounded woman survived, leaving investigators with a living victim whose account may help clarify what happened before Davis returned to the children. Authorities have not released surveillance footage from the parking lot or said whether cameras recorded the shooting. They also have not said how long passed between the gunfire at the bar and the deaths inside the Phoenix home.
By the next day, public attention shifted to the children. Austin was old enough to be known by classmates, teachers and neighbors. Andolan was a toddler. Their deaths drew grief because the children were not part of the adult conflict that police say preceded the killings. Investigators have not released school information, funeral details or family statements beyond accounts shared through public fundraising and interviews.
The wounded woman was expected to survive and the two police departments had not released a final report. The next milestone is the completion of police and medical examiner findings that can set the official timeline.
Author note: Last updated June 21, 2026.