On March 31, 1985, 14-year-old Donna Moser of Evansburg, Pennsylvania, was fatally shot outside St. James Episcopal Church in Lower Providence Township. Donna was with her mother, 35-year-old Linda Moser, and 10-year-old sister Joanne when the group met with Donna’s father, Leon Jerome Moser, after Palm Sunday services. All three were shot; Donna was pronounced dead en route to Suburban Hospital in Norristown while Linda and Joanne were pronounced dead at the scene.

Leon retrieved a bolt-action rifle from his car and shot Linda in the chest, then Donna in the head; Joanne was shot in the back of the head as she tried to get into the car. After the shootings, Leon placed the rifle at his side and fired into the air before falling to the ground and remaining there until police arrived. He was arrested and charged with three counts of first-degree murder and possession of an instrument of a crime.

The family’s deaths stunned the community; reports note a history of violence by Leon toward his ex-wife. If anyone knew Donna, Linda, Joanne or has information about that day or the family’s history, please come forward with what can help clarify events.