Ana Rennie once helped her best friend escape an abusive husband. She never thought she would become a victim herself.

Deputies say her own husband, Robert Rennie, shot her to death inside their Von Ormy home. Then he turned the gun on himself. Their daughter found both bodies inside the house.

The deaths add to a grim trend in Bexar County. Half of the county's homicides this year are tied to domestic abuse. Sheriff Javier Salazar says the cycle keeps repeating because victims often cannot get out in time.

Ana and Robert Rennie met online. They married about three years ago. Both had kids from earlier marriages. The couple moved into a home in the 15000 block of Escalante Pass in Von Ormy in early 2023.

Over the next few years, deputies came to that home 14 times. One of the last calls came on September 19. Ana told deputies her husband had hit her. Deputies arrested Robert Rennie on a domestic violence charge. He bonded out of the Bexar County jail the next day.

Prosecutors dropped the case in October. Ana would not testify against him. Her daughter, Alexandra Cavazos, believes someone scared her mother into staying quiet.

"I think the system has failed my mom," Cavazos said. "Something has to be done."

Less than a year later, deputies were called back to the same house. Cavazos had not heard from her parents in about a day, so she went to check on them. Deputies were sent to the home around 8:24 p.m. Saturday. Inside, Cavazos found both of her parents dead.

Investigators believe Ana was shot at least once in the upper body. They believe Robert died from a gunshot wound he caused himself. Deputies found a handgun at the scene. The medical examiner still has to confirm the exact cause of death for both.

Family and friends want Ana remembered for more than how she died. She was born in Laredo but spent most of her life in San Antonio. She helped raise her younger siblings, which made her strong and independent from a young age.

Ana became a mother of four. She lost her son, Johnathan Gomez, in 2017. Family members say the grief from that loss led to heart problems. She later had open heart surgery.

Even so, her family says her grandchildren gave her the most joy. She had eight of them. They called her "Momo." She loved surprising them with small gifts and kept their favorite snacks stocked in her kitchen.

Ana worked as a surgical tech at Baptist Health System. She loved the job so much she often skipped family trips so she would not miss work. In 2025, she finally took a trip to Paris with her daughter. Cavazos said seeing the sights there made her mom feel like a kid again.

Salazar says this case fits a pattern he sees too often. So far this year, Bexar County has had 10 homicides. Five came from domestic violence, exactly half. Last year the county had 15 homicides, and 9 were tied to domestic abuse.

"Domestic violence abusers just don't stop beating up victims," Salazar said. "The only way that domestic violence usually ends is if somebody leaves that situation, or unfortunately, many times we've seen them escalate to the point where it's a homicide case."

In four of the five domestic violence homicides this year, deputies had already answered abuse calls at the home before someone died.

Ana Rennie's funeral will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday at St. Patrick's Catholic Church. Cavazos wants people to remember her mother as a strong, loving woman, not just a headline.

"She wasn't a statistic," Cavazos said. "She was cared for. She was cherished. I want people to know that about her, and not just know about how her life tragically ended."

Investigators are still working to confirm both causes of death through autopsies. If you or someone you love is in danger, call 911. You can also call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE, or the Battered Women and Children's Shelter crisis line at 210-733-8810. Both offer help in English and Spanish.