Dad shoots his kids in the head after mom kisses them goodnight, Florida sheriff says

A father shot his small children in the head, killing one and severely injuring the other, after their mother kissed them goodnight, according to a Florida sheriff.

The man faces charges of first-degree murder, first-degree attempted murder and aggravated child abuse in connection with the killing that the sheriff called “not only tragic but extremely disturbing.” McClatchy News is not identifying the father to protect the identities of the children.

After 10:30 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 29, a mother kissed her 5-year-old daughter and 8-year-old son goodnight as they lay in a bunk bed in their Tampa home, Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said during a news conference.

She then went into the bathroom and heard gunshots, which she thought came from outside. She ran outside, where she found a neighbor who had already called 911.

Moments later, her husband walked outside carrying their son and repeating “call for help,” Chronister said.

“When our deputies initially arrive on scene, they see the father in the family room cradling the 8-year-old son saying, ‘It was an accident,’” he said.

When deputies went inside to the second floor of the house, they found the man’s 5-year-old daughter in the top bunk, “laying in a pool of her own blood,” Chronister said. She had been shot two to three times in the head.

The children were taken to Tampa General Hospital where the boy underwent surgery and was still “fighting for his life” the following morning, Chronister said, his voice breaking slightly during the news conference. The girl was pronounced dead.

“This is a case and an experience that no parent should have to live through and that no law enforcement officer or first responder should ever have to witness,” he said.

The sheriff’s office will provide counselors for the deputies and detectives who responded to the scene, he said.

“We as a sheriff’s office are struggling today,” he said.

“I don’t know why he did this, and I don’t know if we’ll ever know,” Chronister said. “You don’t accidentally shoot your children three to four times in the head.”

Chronister said there was no record that deputies had responded previously to the house, and the man has no criminal history.

He is being held without bond in the Hillsborough County jail, according to sheriff’s department records.

This story was originally published August 30, 2022 at 3:27 PM with the headline "Dad shoots his kids in the head after mom kisses them goodnight, Florida sheriff says."