Woman found shot to death in SE Houston shallow grave struggled with addiction, sister says

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Jennifer Ramirez had children, siblings, and a husband who loved her. But her constant battle with addiction pushed her away from her loving family.

Now, they're left trying to find the person who killed her.

On Monday afternoon, the Houston Police Department found Ramirez's body behind an apartment complex in the 11000 block of Fuqua. She was buried in a shallow grave on the embankment of a detention pond, police said.

An autopsy revealed that someone shot and killed her.

"She was my best friend. We did so much growing up," Tabitha Galvan, Ramirez's devastated sister, said. "We had children together, had our children grow up together, and it's truly unbearable to realize she's no longer here."

Galvan said she couldn't believe someone would shoot her sister but always feared something terrible would happen. She said Ramirez began struggling with addiction soon after her first child was born and never fully recovered, even after meeting her husband John and having several more kids.

"Just devastation, just trying to come to terms with it. When you have a family member that is abusing and has a history of addiction, these kinds of things are always on your mind, and you always hope that doesn't happen," Galvan said.

Galvan admits the last 20 years have been challenging for everyone. Ramirez walked away from her kids and husband about a decade ago, but they never stopped loving her. Even as she struggled in and out of jail, they hoped she would find her way home.

"There was so much hope in the family that she would be OK," Galvan said. "That she would overcome the addiction and come back home and rebuild her relationships with her children and her husband."

But all that hope of reconciliation is dashed now. In its place, the heartbreak of a life lost too soon. The family said its primary goal is to help Houston police find the person who shot Ramirez and buried her in that shallow grave.

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