Man screams 'Get off my sister' at biker bar, then shoots her and the woman she was fighting with dead

Inset (left): Joseph Howard (Franklin County Sheriff's Office). Inset (center): Taya Mollette (Facebook). Inset (right): Tavia Copley (O.R. Woodyard Co. Funeral & Cremation Services). Background: Double D's bar in Columbus, Ohio (Google Maps).

An Ohio man who tried to protect his sister during a bar fight made a tense situation even worse.

Joseph Howard, 22, was found guilty of murder, aggravated murder, aggravated robbery, felonious assault, and tampering with evidence following a trial in July. On Aug. 6, Howard was sentenced to a cumulative life sentence with the possibility of parole in 49 years. The sentencing came almost three years after Howard opened fire in a bar in Columbus, Ohio, after warning 24-year-old Tavia Copley to "get off" his sister, 24-year-old Taya Mollette.

Both women died of gunshot wounds, and Howard fled to Florida.

According to reporting by local NBC affiliate WCMH, police responded to the Double D's bar in Columbus, Ohio, around 11:30 p.m. on Sept. 13, 2023. Copley and Mollette were fighting outside the bar, and Howard stepped in to help his sister. Prosecutors said during Howard's arraignment that he yelled, "Get off my sister" before firing a gun at both women, fatally striking them and hitting another man, Daniel Brumfield.

After Howard went to help Mollette, he turned his attention back to Copley while she was on the ground, told her she was about to breathe her last breath, then fired one more shot into her head, execution-style, according to prosecutors.

Howard then threatened another witness and stole their phone while Brumfield tried to call 911, which Howard tried to stop. Copley was pronounced dead at the scene. Mollette and Brumfield were taken to the hospital, where Mollette succumbed to her injuries.

U.S. Marshals apprehended Howard in Largo, Florida, two weeks after the shooting.

More from Law&Crime: 'I got you now': Man followed bar patron to his SUV after an argument and shot him in the head, police say

Court records showed that Howard was sentenced to 30 years to life for the aggravated murder of Copley, 15 years to life for Mollette's murder, 8 to 12 years for assaulting Brumfield, 5 to 7 1/2 years for aggravated robbery, and 24 months for tampering with evidence, plus six years for gun specifications.