Las Vegas attorney who witnessed mother being shot dead alongside her new husband reveals how horrifying bloodbath unfolded at 'venomous' custody meeting

A Las Vegas attorney who witnessed the shocking double-murder suicide last week has revealed what had happened minutes before the bloodbath took place.  

Dennis Prince, 57, and Ashley Prince, 30, were fatally shot during a deposition involving Ashley's ex-husband, Dylan Houston, on April 8. 

Dennis was representing his wife Ashley in the case, and Dylan was represented by his father, 77-year-old Joseph Houston II.

It was Joseph who opened fire during the proceedings before turning the gun on himself.

Lisa Rasmussen, an attorney who was inside the conference room at Prince Law Group and sitting next to Joseph at the time of the carnage has now revealed what happened. 

Rasmussen described the shooting as a 'culmination of an incredibly tense custody battle with ​​a lot of venom going back and forth' while talking to FOX News. 

Lisa Rasmussen, an attorney who had witnessed the shocking double-murder suicide last week has revealed what had happened minutes before the bloodbath took place

Dennis Prince, 57, and Ashley Prince, 30, were fatally shot during a deposition by Joseph Houston

Ashley was married to Dylan Houston, another lawyer (left). His father Joseph (right) killed her, her new husband and then himself 

Gunshots broke out during a deposition Monday morning, with Houston pulling out a handgun and shooting Prince in the chest four times. Pictured: Dennis Prince

She told the channel: 'All of a sudden there's this horrible noise and I couldn't even identify it. It was like a bomb.

'It was sort of echoing in my head… I had no idea what it was. I turned to my right to kind of look at Joe, maybe and say, "What… what the hell was that?" And I just see, right next to me, a barrel and a sleeve.

'I don't even remember seeing the hand. It's so weird. I just saw the barrel of a gun.

'I recall Joe standing up and pointing across the table with the barrel – the gun. And by that time, and at that moment, I was really clear on what was happening. I'm like, "okay, that was a gunshot. That's a gun. He's pointing it".

'I wasn't going to stand around. I peeled back to my left – jumped up.'

Rasmussen immediately ran out of the room with her client, an eight-month pregnant associate, later identified as Shannon Wilson, and a court reporter as soon as she realized what had happened.

Rasmussen said: 'I recall Joe standing up and pointing across the table with the barrel – the gun. And by that time, and at that moment, I was really clear on what was happening. I'm like, "okay, that was a gunshot. That's a gun. He's pointing it"'

Dylan (center) was being represented by his father, 77-year-old Joseph (bottom right) during the ex-couple's custody proceedings. Also pictured Joe's wife, Katherine Houston (bottom left), his daughters Taylor (top left) and Kelly (top right)

Despite already knowing about Joe's cancer diagnosis, she said he seemed 'jovial' and displayed no warning signs that morning. 

'I was aware that he had a cancer diagnosis, but he did not seem just so, you know, terminally ill. 

'He was able-bodied, and he had a full head of hair, and he was jovial. He didn't seem sick or even like he didn't feel well. He didn't look pale. He didn't. So he may have had a diagnosis that was problematic. I, of course, have no idea what was going through his mind. 

'People ask me if I think Joe came with a plan to do this, and I say no. I just really think it just unfolded in a moment of rage, whatever. And we're never going to know, right? Because Joe took his own life. We're never going to know what happened.' 

According to Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill, gunshots broke out at around 10 a.m. inside the Prince Law Group's Summerlin office.

'You know, it's just so tragic, I can't even put it into words,' Eglet said. 

The gunman pictured here with his daughter Taylor days before the carnage

Dennis and Ashley had also recently welcomed a child together

Court documents filed hours later detailed the moments preceding the senseless violence.

Five minutes after the deposition began, Houston 'stood up, had a very glazed and rattled look in his eyes, pulled out a handgun and shot Prince four times,' the documents state.

As the shots rang out, Houston appeared to take notice of a pregnant lawyer who was in the room - and spare her life.

Wilson had 'immediately ducked and hid under the conference room table.'

Michele LoBello, another one of Ashley Prince's attorneys, alleged that Wilson had pleaded with the gunman not to hurt her baby.

'She explained to me that Mr. Houston allowed her to leave the conference room and following her quick departure and taking cover elsewhere in the office, she heard additional shots fired,' LoBello stated.

Ashley with her ex-husband, Dylan Houston, at their wedding. The pair were entangled in a bitter custody dispute over their two young children. Dylan, who is a partner at Resnick & Louis in Las Vegas, filed for divorce from Ashley in October 2021 following four years of marriage

Officials responding to reports of a shooting on April 8, 2024 at the law office 

Dylan Houston himself was not present at the deposition, but the documents note that a private investigator had recorded 'concerning information regarding Plaintiff's drinking and dangerous behavior' a month earlier.

The investigator allegedly observed Dylan driving home from a bar on March 29 while swerving around the road.

Dylan, who is a partner at Resnick & Louis in Las Vegas, filed for divorce from Ashley in October 2021 following four years of marriage.

According to social media posts, the pair were together for several years before they wed, with Ashley announcing that she and Dylan were moving in together in 2014.

She was identified as Ashley Prince in court records as recently as last month. 

A divorce decree issued in November 2021 granted the pair joint custody of their children, a son and daughter aged five and four - however, this remained in dispute.

Divorce filings allege Dylan grappled with substance abuse while he had custody of their children.

Another one of Ashley's lawyers, John Jones, made reference to 'a positive drug test for cocaine' as well as 'a positive alcohol test during his custodial time' as well as 'a missed alcohol test'.

Prince had been recognized as the Nevada Trial Lawyer of the Year in 2016 by the Nevada Justice Association and tried more than 100 cases to jury verdict at the time of his death

Divorce filings allege Dylan grappled with substance abuse while he had custody of their children 

Records show Dylan was arrested on a DUI charge in October 2020, but later pleaded it down to a misdemeanor reckless driving charge.

Following his no contest plea in February 2022, Dylan was ordered to complete community service and DUI classes. 

The records also claim he would send abusive texts to Ashley, who filed for sole custody of the pair's children the very morning of the shooting.

Within hours of her death, Ashley's lawyers filed an emergency motion requesting that sole custody of the children be given to her sister. The motion was granted.

In that document, LoBello alleged Dylan 'knew or must have known of the intentions of his father prior to the commission of these heinous acts.'

She cited an attempt to pick up his children 'in the middle of the school day, despite the details as to (Ashley's) status of dead or alive not being made public at this time'.

Dylan hit back at the accusations in a response. 

'The motivation of the tragedy of April 8, 2024, is unknown to anyone but Joseph W. Houston himself. The Defense's suggestion that this was a 'planned attack' with the Plaintiff is insulting and quite speculative,' he wrote.

He asserted that his actions were 'not indicative of a co-conspirator as the Defense callously would like the Court to believe, rather that of a concerned father wanting to protect, console, love and support his children from any unnecessary discussion regarding this tragedy'.

The law group released a statement hours after the murders, thanking 'everyone who has reached out to us with heartfelt messages of concern and sympathy over the tragic violence that occurred this morning in our offices'

According to a biography on the law firm's website, Prince was the founding member and lead trial counsel on all major cases.

He was recognized as the Nevada Trial Lawyer of the Year in 2016 by the Nevada Justice Association and tried more than 100 cases to jury verdict at the time of his death.

He and Ashley had also recently welcomed a child together.

The law group released a statement hours after the murders, thanking 'everyone who has reached out to us with heartfelt messages of concern and sympathy over the tragic violence that occurred this morning in our offices'.

The Houston family released their own statement through a public relations firm on Tuesday.

'Our family is in a state of profound shock and sadness at yesterday's events. We ask for prayers and privacy as we try to navigate the coming days,' it read.

'The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department is still conducting their investigation and as that continues, speculation about details of the incident only serves to add trauma to our already grieving and overwhelmed families.

'We have full faith in Metro's efforts and will leave all future comment to them as their investigation unfolds.'