| HeraldNet - Snohomish County's online news source |
 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2010 1:01 am |
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Local News 
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Charges filed in girl's shooting MARYSVILLE -- A 6-year-old girl was facing the muzzle of a .45-caliber handgun when her father accidentally pulled the trigger.Stormy Peters was shot in the forehead. She died a few hours later. Prosecutors on Tuesday charged Richard Peters, 42, with first-degree manslaughter in Snohomish County Superior Court. He is accused of recklessly causing his daughter's death Nov. 16. He faces more than 13 years in prison if he's convicted. Investigators believe Peters shot his daughter while he was cleaning his gun. They also believe he was drunk. Peters told investigators he'd spent the hours before the shooting sitting on the family room couch, watching television and drinking four to five double vodka and Cokes. "For reasons which remain unclear, it was at about 7:15 p.m. that the defendant, having been drinking, decided this would be a good time to clean some of his guns," Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Paul Stern wrote. Peters owns several guns, including assault rifles, handguns and shotguns, according to court documents. He told investigators he usually keeps his guns loaded but without a bullet in the chamber, Stern wrote. Peters said the handgun that killed his daughter doesn't have a safety but has a "hair trigger." He usually cleaned his guns in the garage but on the night of the shooting, Peters asked Stormy to retrieve one of his guns from his bedroom, court papers said. "He indicated that when he asked his 6-year-old to carry the weapon around the house to him, he was uncertain where his 3-year-old or 8-year-old children were," Stern wrote. Stormy's mother was talking on the telephone when she saw Stormy walk by with the gun. She said she didn't stop Stormy because she was "too wrapped up trying to get (her) mom off the phone," Stern wrote. She also told investigators that her husband has asked the children to bring guns to him a couple of times in the past. She said they are always careful to tell their children to act like there's a bullet in the chamber, court papers said. "Apparently the defendant, in his drunken state, forgot that lesson," Stern wrote. Investigators believe Peters pulled the trigger as he was removing the magazine from the gun, according to the charging document. The defendant said he felt responsible for Stormy's death because he asked her to retrieve the gun for him, Stern wrote. A neighbor told police he advised his wife not to let their daughter play at the Peters' home because he was aware that the children were allowed to handle firearms. He was worried someone would accidentally get shot, Stern wrote. Peters, a Boeing machinist, is being held in the Snohomish County Jail on $250,000 bail. Stern requested a higher bail Tuesday, arguing that Peters has the means to flee the state if he is released from jail. Peters also has talked about committing suicide and burning down his house, Stern wrote. Peters also has refused to identify the friends who were with him during the shooting, thwarting that aspect of the police investigation, court papers said. Prosecutors now know Stormy was facing the gun straight on when she was shot, according to the court document. Stormy was a first-grader at Quil Ceda Elementary School. Family and friends gathered for a memorial service for the girl last week. Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com. |
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