Las Vegas woman denied protection order 3 weeks before husband killed her and their three children

A Las Vegas woman asked for -- and was denied -- a protection order three weeks before her husband killed her, their three children and then himself.

Phoukeo Dej-Oudom sought the order June 8 but was denied the following day without a hearing because the request did “not meet statutory requirements,” reported the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

The 34-year-old Dej-Oudom, who filed for divorce May 25, had moved with her children to a cousin's home in the suburbs.

She told the court her husband, Jason Dej-Oudom, had harassed repeatedly threatened her and their children by putting a gun to their heads.

The day before she sought the protection order, Dej-Oudom said her husband sent harassing text messages and showed up to her workplace to threaten to take the children back to Ohio -- which he had recently done without her permission.

“I tell him to leave promptly," she told the court. "He mentioned that he will take children whenever he pleases. In conversation, he said me not returning home is not an option, and will not accept it. Also said, ‘if anything were to happen to children, hopes I can live w/ that.’ Also, has said that ‘This will not end well.’”

The court denied her request for a protection order, although it's not clear what statutory requirements Dej-Oudom failed to meet.

Judge William Potter, who presided over the divorce case, was unavailable for comment, and his assistant referred the newspaper to county court spokeswoman Mary Ann Price, who declined to comment.

Amy Mastin, the hearing master who denied the application, was also not available for comment.

Nevada law allows for temporary protection orders when there is evidence of domestic violence or threats of domestic violence -- which include harassment and threats.

Judges may call for hearings when applications are incomplete or more information is needed, and employers may also apply for temporary protection orders if an employee is being harassed at work.

An extended protection order could have resulted in a court order for Jason Dej-Oudom, who had arrested in 2005 for domestic violence in Columbus, Ohio, to turn over his firearms.

Phoukeo Dej-Oudom quit her job on June 18 at Sport Clips Haircuts in fear for her life, and she was dead 11 days later.

She was shot and killed June 29 outside a Walgreens store, and police found her three children and their father dead at the family's condominium.

Police said 15-year-old Dalavanh, 14-year-old Xonajuk and 9-year-old Anhurak dead from gunshot wounds to the head, and their father dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.

Investigators aren't sure whether the children were killed before or after their mother.