Aubrie Sellers Canceled Plans to Line Dance at Calif. Bar Shooting Venue Hours Before Tragedy
If Aubrie Sellers had followed through with her plans to line dance at Borderline Bar & Grill in Thousand Oaks, California, on Wednesday evening, she would have been a witness to the tragic shooting that killed at least 12 people.
The daughter of Lee Ann Womack and Jason Sellers, who released her album New City Blue in 2016, revealed on Twitter and Instagram Story Thursday morning that she had canceled last-minute after she discovered her cat Laney was ill. “Last night we were going to go line dancing at 9:30 PM at a bar called Borderline we heard about in Thousand Oaks,” Sellers, who previously performed on tour with Miranda Lambert, tweeted.
“An hour before we were to leave, I got home and Laney’s eye was swollen shut so we didn’t go. Thinking of everyone affected by this today. Truly unbelievable,” continued the garage country-rocker, who is known for her “garage country” sound and often finds herself fighting the traditional side of her genre for the opportunity to showcase her rebellious spirit.
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Last night we were going to go line dancing at 9:30 PM at a bar called Borderline we heard about in Thousand Oaks... an hour before we were to leave, I got home and Laney’s eye was swollen shut so we didn’t go. Thinking of everyone affected by this today. Truly unbelievable.
— AUBRIE SELLERS (@aubriesellers) November 8, 2018
In addition to being a popular Southern California spot for country music fans, the Borderline Bar & Grill was also a venue for performers including comedian Andrew Dice Clay, singer Jerrod Niemann and Meghan Linsey, who is formerly of the duo Steel Magnolia.
“So many of my friends and I have played this bar. How devastating. My thoughts and heartfelt prayers go out to the victims, their families and the Borderline staff,” Linsey tweeted on Thursday.
At least 12 people were killed after a gunman threw smoke grenades and opened fire late Wednesday evening in at the Thousand Oaks bar, west of Los Angeles, that was reportedly hosting a college night for which hundreds of people were in attendance.
A Ventura sheriff’s sergeant, identified as Ron Helus, was one of the first on the scene about three minutes later and was shot as he entered the bar and died at the hospital, said Ventura County Sheriff Geoff Dean. The shooter also died in the assault, though it is unclear how.
Eleven other slain victims were found inside.
“It’s a horrific scene in there,” Dean said, according to CNN. “There is blood everywhere and the suspect is part of that, and I didn’t want to get that close and disturb the scene and possibly disturb the investigation.”
Dean also told a local news outlet, “It’s part of the horrors that are happening in our country and everywhere, and I think it’s impossible to put any logic or sense to the senseless.”
