The family of murdered realtor Ashlee Long gasped loudly with raw emotion as they saw images of her being shot and her lifeless body falling to the street shown during a court hearing Wednesday where her alleged shooter asked for a lower bond.
A local judge ultimately denied accused killer Kendrick Finch, 34, and his request to lower his $500,000 bond in the April 5 killing.
Both her family and Finch’s relatives packed the courthouse for the hearing in Dallas earlier this week.
Long, 28, a glamorous and successful realtor from the Houston area and bride-to-be, had traveled to Dallas last month for a work conference, according to media reports.
The relator’s relatives wore matching shirts bearing her name and a special message, reported local station WFAA.
Family members who could not contain their emotion were advised to leave before the dramatic images of her final moments were shown publicly for the first time.
While out on the town with a man in downtown Dallas around 2:30 a.m., her male companion, later identified as William Kistler, touched a white Mercedes as it drove by on the street, prompting the luxury sedan to come to a stop on the street.
Footage of the April 5 incident shows Kistler, 36, reaching for Long’s purse which had his gun in it, according to a Dallas police homicide detective who testified in the bond hearing.
Finch emerged from the car, visibly upset and holding a 9 mm handgun, stills from the video shown in court demonstrated.
Kistler struggled with Long, as she tried to hold him back, but he eventually retrieved a 40 caliber pistol from her bag.
At that point, Finch started shooting at the pair on a busy street filled with shops, restaurants and apartment buildings, striking Long in the process.
Kistler, who was able to fire three shots from his weapon, was also hit and was taken to the hospital while Finch fled.
Finch called police hours later, according to local station Fox 4, and identified himself as the shooter. However, it wasn’t until April 18 when he turned himself over to investigators.
His previous criminal records include drug and burglary charges, the TV station reported.
Despite Finch fleeing from the crime scene, his lawyer claims Kistler is to blame for the shooting.
‘We know for sure Ashlee Long would be alive today except for William Kistler. William Kistler is the one who started everything that night it showed in the video,’ her attorney stated in court.
Finch was only defending himself, his lawyer added.
‘When (Kistler) takes those steps towards my client, my client has every right under the law to defend himself.’
Kistler did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com’s request for comment.
It’s unclear how Long and Kistler knew each other, as he is a resident of Celina, a Dallas suburb.
His former employer, a custom truck company, shared that they had ‘cut all ties’ with him after he left the company a few years ago.
He does not appear to be involved in the realty business.
Kistler is also not the man Long was engaged to.
Her online obituary listed her high school sweetheart, Jacob Underwood, as her fiancé.