Bail doubled for father of 4-year-old who accidentally shot mother after new information emerges
Published 1:30 am Tuesday, August 5, 2025
EVERETT — The father of a 4-year-old child who accidentally shot his mother after allegedly having access to an unsecured firearm in Lynnwood pleaded not guilty in Snohomish County Court on Monday. He will proceed to trial.
On Friday, 14 charges were filed against David Neff, 44, including unsafe storage of a firearm in the first degree domestic violence and domestic violence, possession of an unlawful firearm, reckless endangerment, domestic violence, possession of explosive device and unlicensed possession of explosives.
Around 8 a.m. on July 15, Snohomish County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a report of the shooting in the 3100 block of 164th Street Southwest.
The 42-year-old mother was transported to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle with serious but non-life-threatening injuries from a gunshot wound to her upper left arm. The child sustained an injury under his right eye, believed to be from the recoil of the gun after it was fired, according to court documents.
Deputies said the child retrieved the firearm from his father, who was asleep on the couch at the time of the incident.
The 4-year-old and a 9-year-old were living in the home at the time of the shooting. Both children were released to family members after the incident.
Deputies found drug paraphernalia within the home and narcotics on Neff after searching him upon his arrest.
Initially set at $500,000, Neff’s bail doubled to $1 million after a three-day search revealed new discoveries in the defendant’s home.
“Increased bail is appropriate where the additional information supports that the danger for future violence was not fully appreciated at the time that bail was initially set,” court documents said.
Deputies found 73 firearms within the residence, 60 of which were not registered to the defendant, and many were not securely stored.
During the search, officers contacted the Washington State Patrol bomb squad after discovering more than 10 suspected explosives, many of which had additional shrapnel or fragments added to them, located in the home. Deputies also found a drawing with Neff’s name on it detailing, seemingly, a mass shooting of the defendant’s community, court documents said.
“The magnitude of the threat that the defendant poses to this community was not fully understood until the search concluded,” court documents said.
Deputies recognized Neff as someone who worked at West Coast Armory, a gun shop and range in Everett.
Jenna Millikan: 425-339-3035; jenna.millikan@heraldnet.com; X: @JennaMillikan
