Obsession preceded fatal shooting of 4 at Fayette County car wash

Four days before being fatally shot outside a Fayette County car wash, a Ruffsdale woman made a seemingly innocuous post on Facebook.

"After this week, I (really) need to get taken out… on a date or by a sniper either one is fine (with) me at this point," read the social media message shared Wednesday by Chelsie Lou Cline, 25.

The sole response came from Tim Smith.

"I could do both," he wrote.

Early Sunday, he made good on one offer, authorities said.

Wearing body armor and toting an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and a 9 mm handgun — along with several magazines for each — Timothy O'Brien Smith opened fire on Cline and others just before 3 a.m. at Ed's Car Wash on Indian Creek Valley Road in Melcroft, Saltlick Township, District Attorney Rich Bower said.

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Cline died at the scene along with William "Billy" Scott Porterfield, 27; Courtney Sue Snyder, 23; and Seth William Cline, 21.

Authorities did not say where the victims lived.

Smith, 28, remained on life support in a local hospital with a gunshot wound to the head, possibly self-inflicted, Bower said.

Another woman, who is in her early 20s, survived the rampage and was treated for minor injuries suffered from broken glass. She was not identified.

"Obviously, it's a traumatic experience for her," said Sgt. Jeremy Barni, supervisor of the state police criminal unit in Uniontown.

Authorities did not divulge a motive or reveal details that led to the mass shooting. They declined to say what items were seized during a search of Smith's residence but noted the investigation is ongoing.

Investigators are examining surveillance video and information from cellphones as well as conducting interviews.

Barni could not specify the relationship between the Clines.

Sierra Kolarik, 24, of nearby White, said they were siblings. She identified herself as Chelsie Cline's half-sister, saying the two have the same mother.

Smith and Chelsie Cline knew each other and possibly dated, Kolarik said. He developed an obsession with her, leaving beer on her car, sending her flowers and buying her Christmas presents, she said.

Smith "came off as the most kind-hearted person," Kolarik said, but she added that his interests were "guns and guns and guns and shooting and beer and rolling cigarettes."

Ryan Shields, a friend of Smith's from high school in Mt. Pleasant, said the shootings were out of character.

"It's all still quite a shock," Ryan Shields said Monday. "He was the kind of guy who would do anything for you."

Shields said Smith, who lives in Stahlstown and works as a chef in Ligonier, had been in a relationship with Chelsie Cline. According to Shields, Smith frequented a Donegal restaurant where Chelsie Cline recently worked.

Shields said Smith is a gun enthusiast who enjoyed target shooting.

Seth Cline would "do anything to protect anyone, even if it meant taking a bullet," Kolarik said.

Still, she struggled Sunday to deal with what happened.

"I don't understand," Kolarik said. "I still don't believe it."

Bower expressed sympathy for the victims' families.

"This one horrific event will change their lives forever," he said.

Bower said the victims arrived at the car wash in two vehicles — Porterfield and Chelsie Cline in a Dodge Stratus, and Snyder driving a green Chevy Silverado pickup truck with Seth Cline and the unnamed woman as passengers.

Bower said Smith is believed to have arrived ahead of time in his red Toyota Tacoma pickup. He parked on the side of the two-bay car wash where Porterfield and Cline were shot and killed after exiting their vehicle.

Snyder and Seth Cline were shot inside their truck while it was stopped, Bower said. The young woman who survived took cover in the rear seat.

An unspecified number of shots were fired, Bower said. Smith also had a .308 rifle in his possession, he said.

Chelsie Cline worked a late shift Saturday at Sarnelli's Corner in nearby Jones Mills. Coworkers said she appeared cheerful, singing and dancing behind a deli counter.

She started working there just before Thanksgiving, said co-owner Mike Sarnelli, who described her as a good worker who was polite to customers.

April Cline, 37, of Acme said she walked her cousin out into the rainy night after they finished their shifts and closed up just after 11 p.m.

She said she received a text about 8 a.m. Sunday from her aunt saying there had been a shooting. April Cline watched television footage of what looked like Chelsie's Dodge Stratus at the scene.

"I felt that sick feeling, one of those things," she said. "I hoped to God it wasn't her."

Assistant city editor Jason Cato contributed. Jeff Himler and Wes Venteicher are Tribune-Review staff writers. Reach Himler at 724-836-6622, jhimler@tribweb.com or via Twitter @jhimler_news. Reach Venteicher at 412-380-5676, wventeicher@tribweb.com or via Twitter @wesventeicher.