LAND O' LAKES, Fla. — A 5-year-old girl is left without both her parents after a domestic violence attack.
“Now this child is going to have to carry this the rest of her life. Every time you talk about Christmas season she’s going to remember this horrific time," said Pasco Sheriff Chris Nocco.
The Pasco Sheriff’s Office is not naming those involved, but said a man showed up at his wife’s home in Land O’ Lakes Tuesday, shot and killed her, then fired at his daughter.
Investigators said the bullet when through her arm and she is recovering at the hospital.
They said the man then shot and killed himself.
The man had been arrested for domestic violence against his wife in August, which led her to file an injunction.
“It’s the most heartbreaking and gut-wrenching tragedy that you can experience in a community," said Mindy Murphy, The Spring of Tampa Bay CEO.
She said filing a domestic violence injunction is just one step, and they also make sure victims have a safety plan in place.
“Changing up the way you drive to and from work. Changing the time of day you pick your kids up. There are so many things. But they are unique to each individual survivor," said Murphy.
She said some abusers back off when a domestic violence injunction is filed.
But for others, it can set them off.
“We are trying to tease out a thinking process about if I do this then this might be the end result. So how can I change that result so that I’m safer.”
Sheriff Nocco said domestic violence and mental health cases are constant.
And just yesterday, they had eight suicide calls, two ending in death.
“With everything going on in our country. The economy. The stresses going on. Social media. We are seeing the mental health calls escalating. We are also scared to death because we know domestic violence calls unfortunately tend to go up during the holiday season," said Nocco.
Spring of Tampa Bay and most domestic violence center’s around the state have attorneys that can help with the process of filing an injunction.
Murphy said as a society we need to do a better job at holding abusers accountable and supporting survivors.
Deputies described the shooting that occurred between a husband, wife and child in the Marchmont Boulevard area of Land O' Lakes as a murder-suicide during a press conference.
Sheriff Chris Nocco said that around 8:35 p.m. on Dec. 13, a mother was walking the babysitter out to her car with her five-year-old daughter. When the babysitter started backing out, she saw a man start running towards the mother and daughter, who immediately started shooting at the two.
The babysitter called 911 immediately to notify officials, and the daughter ran inside the home. Deputies arrived and tried to render aid to the mother, who had been shot, but she passed away almost immediately after being struck.
Sheriff Nocco said that the daughter then came out of the house and told deputies, "My daddy is upstairs, he's inside the master bathroom, and I heard a big bang." Deputies also found that the child had been shot in the arm and rendered aid.
A SWAT team was called to the scene, and after going inside the house, they found the suspect dead upstairs with a handgun beside him.
The child was taken to the hospital and is currently with a victim advocate and Child Protective Services. Sheriff Nocco said she will recover, and that she will be placed into family care to make sure she's safe.
Sheriff Nocco also noted that the suspect had previously been arrested for domestic battery in August 2022, and his wife was granted a domestic violence injunction against him.
Deputies said the investigation remains active and declined to give any further information. Victims' names are not being released due to Marsy's Law.
Watch the full press conference below.
