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The mother of an American Fork woman, who police say was shot and killed Sunday by her ex-boyfriend, says her daughter got a restraining order after a beating that left her badly bruised in a relationship marked by violence.

SueAnn Sands' mother Becky Jensen told KUTV 2News that her daughter had a 10-month-old baby and was trying to rebuild her life after a struggle with drug abuse.

Police say 33-year-old James Dean Smith was served with the temporary protective order on Nov. 21.

Investigators say the 39-year-old woman was shot and killed near her job Sunday after she stepped out to meet with Smith.

He later died after gunfire erupted in a confrontation with police, though authorities say it is not clear if police killed him or he shot himself.

American Fork police referred questions about how Smith died to the Utah County Attorneys Office and its Bureau of Investigation.

However, Bureau Chief Jeff Robinson said Tuesday that the investigation had just begun, and that he was not at liberty to discuss any findings until the probe is complete. He had no estimate for when that work will be completed.

"We're still getting a lot of evidence at this point, and there are a lot of interviews yet to be done," he said.

Sands was found dead inside her Volkswagen Beetle just moments after she made a frantic 7:26 p.m. 911 call from the parking lot of a Wal-Mart at 949 W. Grassland Drive, in American Fork.

Multiple gunshots had been fired through the front-passenger window, one striking Sands in the head.

She was dead at the scene, but information that she and other 911 callers provided in her final seconds of life helped police quickly locate Smith and his silver Chevrolet Tahoe outside the Gordmans store at 219 Meadow Lane.

Smith drove away, but stopped two minutes later in the parking lot of a Cinemark theater at 715 W. Main St., police said.

An American Fork officer, a Lehi officer and a Utah County sheriff's deputy confronted Smith and saw he had a handgun.

When Smith refused demands to drop the gun, all three law officers fired. Smith was pronounced dead at the scene at 8:07 p.m., police have said.

Police said Smith, of Orem, and Sands had co-habitated for a period of time.

Fourth District Court records show that Sands was granted a temporary protective order against Smith on Nov. 9.

Police said American Fork officers had been on the lookout for Smith for the past week and a half, stemming from property damage and stalking allegations filed by Sand's family.

Parallel investigations into the shootings were being conducted by the Utah County attorney's office, the sheriff's office, and the American Fork and Lehi police departments. The officers involved, who were unhurt, were placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the reviews.