HUDSON, Ohio -- Stephen Bice texted his three sons to lure them out of their home before he went there and killed his wife of 22 years and committed suicide, according to police reports.

Bice texted his three sons -- ages 18, 16 and 14 -- early Saturday and invited them to meet him at Fun-N-Stuff in Macedonia to talk about their family issues.

The boys debated whether to leave their mother -- Kristi Bice, 42 -- alone. They left because they missed their father, despite being angry with him for threatening to kill their mother two months earlier, according to their uncle, Ronald Kennedy, who is a detective at the Akron Police Department.

Their 18-year-old son slept on the couch with a baseball bat since February to protect his mother, Kennedy said.

The boys left about 11:30 a.m.

Their mother, a 1992 Hoban High School graduate who worked as a receptionist at a Bainbridge dentist office, texted her adult daughter that she was scared the message to her sons was a ploy by her estranged husband.

"Boys get there and he isn't there," Kristi Bice texted to her daughter. "I hope he isn't planning on getting them out of the house so he can blow me up."

Stephen Bice, an unemployed truck driver, drove to the Western Reserve Athletic Club. He made the mile walk to the family's home in the 7600 block of Ravenna Road.

He broke into the home through the front door. Kristi Bice grabbed a .38-caliber revolver but didn't have time to pull the trigger.

Stephen Bice took his Ruger 9-millimeter semiautomatic handgun and shot the family Great Dane, according to police reports. The bullet broke a chain-link collar and sent shrapnel into the dog's shoulder. He was taken to Twinsburg Veterinary Hospital, where he is recovering.

Stephen Bice then fired five shots at Kristi. He hit her four times, police reports say. He shot her in the left thigh, in the right leg and in the stomach, knocking her to the floor, according to police reports. He then shot her once in the head at close range.

He stood over her and used the last bullet in his handgun to shoot himself in the right temple, according to police reports.

Police found Kristi's cellphone next to her head. Her 18-year-old son tried to call her shortly before. He drove his brothers to Fun-N-Stuff and became worried when their father never showed up.

The son pulled into the driveway and noticed the door was open. He told his brother to stay in the car. He walked into the home and found his parents dead on the living room floor. He told his 14-year-old brother to call 911.

Police arrived and found a bloody scene inside the home. Officers noted Stephen Bice smelled of alcohol.

A federal Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearm agent is investigating how Stephen Bice bought the gun, which was new, according to police reports.

Kennedy said his sister had been estranged from the family for years. She knew her family disapproved of the way her husband treated her, but she turned to them after a Jan. 14 incident in which Stephen Bice threatened to kill her and himself.

He repeatedly violated a Summit County judge's protection order that was supposed to keep him from contacting her or being near her. The protection order was temporarily approved on Jan. 15. On Feb. 3, the judge extended the protection order through Jan. 15, 2021.

Stephen Bice was repeatedly described in police and court records as an alcoholic.

Kennedy agreed to stay at their home. Her other brother is a Brimfield police officer and also agreed to help his sister with whatever protection she needed.

Stephen Bice eventually pleaded guilty in the case on Feb. 23. He pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct, which was amended from a domestic violence charge, something Kennedy said he was unhappy with.

"She felt pressured to let him plead guilty to the disorderly conduct," he said. "I'm disappointed in the way it was handled. Maybe nothing would have been different but maybe he thought he got away with something."

After the January incident, Kristi Bice started spending more time with her family and planned on going to a family birthday party on Sunday. She met with an attorney to see what she would need to do to file for a divorce.

Kennedy said they are hoping to find a power-of-attorney in order to lift the burden placed on Bice's 18-year-old son, a senior at Hudson High School. He is currently in charge of his parents' estate. Kennedy said family members are helping him.

Family members were told Kristi Bice gave power-of-attorney to her 28-year-old daughter but they were unable to find the paperwork over the weekend, Kennedy and police reports said.

Kennedy said the Bice's sons are staying with family members, but will eventually have to decide who will get permanent custody of the two children under 18.

Kennedy said he wanted to tell his sister's story in hopes that someone in a similar situation will react differently. He also hopes the criminal justice system will treat domestic violence more seriously, including getting mental health treatment for offenders.

"If he had more help and knew better ways to cope, maybe this wouldn't have happened," Kennedy said. "My sister obviously saw something in him. She loved him and was married to him for 22 years."