Deputy Shot His Own Daughter After She Tried To Sneak Back Into Their Home

A deputy shot his own 16-year-old daughter when she tried to sneak back into their home, and nothing but panic seems to have taken place afterward.

The Virginia sheriff’s deputy, Easton McDonald, thought his daughter was an intruder and shot her early Tuesday morning around 3:30 am when she returned to the home after sneaking out, according to USA Today.

McDonald heard an alarm sound from his garage which told him that the garage door was open as he was getting ready for work. The deputy went toward the garage to investigate and heard some sounds and a loud bang.

Frederick County Sherrif’s Office Capt. Donnie Lang told The Washington Post, “He figured someone had broken into the garage, and his family was upstairs asleep.”

The deputy retrieved his pistol from the kitchen and started again toward the garage. That is when his daughter approached him, but all the deputy could see was a dark shape. The deputy shot what he believed to be an intruder in the chest.

Authorities said that the deputy called 911 after he discovered that he accidentally shot his own daughter when he heard her voice.

“[A] male subject stated, ‘My daughter’s been shot and I’m taking her to the hospital.’ There was an open line for a few seconds and then the phone disconnected,” Lang described the 911 call to WHAG-TV.

The panicked deputy decided to drive his daughter to the hospital on his own, but unfortunately he crashed his car on the way to the hospital.

An ambulance took the teenage girl from the scene of the accident to Winchester Medical Center for treatment for her gunshot wound.

The deputy’s daughter suffered a gunshot wound to her torso and did not suffer any injuries when her father hit the barricade and crashed the car. She was listed in stable condition on Thursday, according to Daily News.

The deputy is a 13-year veteran for the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office, and he did not use his on-duty weapon when he accidentally shot his daughter. He has been placed on administrative leave while his department investigates the incident.

“We will confer with the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office [to] reference all the facts, and once it is completed, determine how they want us to go further,” Land stated.

Investigators said that the deputy did not suffer any serious injuries following the car accident, but he was very emotionally distressed after he shot his daughter.

[Image of badge via Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office]