Justine Ruszczyk traveled from her native Australia to Minneapolis to live with her fiancé three years ago. They were going to marry next month.
She had already embarked on a long, personal journey. Trained as a veterinarian, Ruszczyk changed directions and became a spiritual healer, yoga and meditation instructor and life coach. She wanted to help people "discover the power and potential within their own brains and hearts," she said on her web page.
That positive attitude made Ruszczyk, 40, a favorite in her community -- and made her sudden death jolting.
A passionate advocate of nonviolence, she was shot to death Saturday night.
Ruszczyk had called police to report a possible sexual assault near her home, her fiancé, Don Damond, said Monday.
Two police officers responded, and one of them shot her in the abdomen, killing her, according to police and an autopsy released Monday.
Police have not explained how the shooting happened, leaving friends and family demanding answers.
"The death of Justine is a loss to everyone who knew her. She touched so many people with her loving and generous heart," Damond said Monday.
She was living with him at the time of her death and had already adopted his surname professionally.
"Our lives are forever changed as a result of knowing her," Damond said. "She was so kind and so darn funny. She made us all laugh with her great wit and her humor."
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said the killing was shocking, adding that the government wants to know how it occurred.
"Our consul general is supporting the family and we are seeking answers to this," he told Australian Channel 9's "Today" show.
"This is a shocking killing. It is inexplicable. Our hearts go out to her family. I mean, how can a woman out in the street in her pajamas seeking assistance from the police be shot like that? It is a shocking killing."
family. I mean, how can a woman out in the street in her pajamas seeking assistance from the police be shot like that? It is a shocking killing."
'Dark night of the soul'
Ruszczyk had lived in the United States since April 2014, said someone who knew her. She had dual citizenship in the United States and in Australia because her father holds US citizenship, the source said.
She quit her career as a veterinary surgeon to become a spiritual healer after losing her mother to cancer and reconsidering her purpose in life, Ruszczyk said in a video recording of a talk she gave July 2 at Minneapolis' Lake Harriet Spiritual Community, where she worked.
In the video, Ruszczyk said she experienced a "dark night of the soul" on New Year's Day in 2006 while traveling and began to consider the message of a movie she'd seen, "What the Bleep Do We Know?" That film is about "a world where science and spirituality converge," according to a website for the movie.
Ruszczyk said seeing the movie made her wonder, "Maybe our thoughts have a measurable effect on our reality? Maybe the way we think and feel can not only affect our reality but perhaps create it?"
She began to explore alternative therapies, mind-body medicine and studies in Eastern philosophies, consciousness and quantum physics, she wrote on her professional web page.
In her business, she offered personal development and leadership training for individuals, groups and businesses.
"She was a gifted speaker, meditation leader, teacher and transformation coach," said Nancy Coune, an administrator at Lake Harriet Spiritual Community, where Ruszczyk was supposed to give a talk Tuesday. "Her message is of love and peace and nonviolence."