District attorney indicted after shooting at fugitive suspect, striking home with 3 kids inside: police

A Tennessee grand jury has indicted District Attorney Christopher Stanford on one count of reckless endangerment after he allegedly fired shots at a fugitive, striking a house.

Dec 19, 2024 - 00:00
District attorney indicted after shooting at fugitive suspect, striking home with 3 kids inside: police

A Tennessee grand jury has indicted a district attorney after he allegedly fired shots at a fugitive suspect on Nov. 21 and ended up striking a home with a woman and three children inside, according to state officials.

The DeKalb County grand jury indicted 31st Judicial District Attorney General Christopher Robert Stanford on Monday on one count of reckless endangerment, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) said in a press release.

"The investigation revealed that, during the pursuit of a wanted fugitive, Stanford fired a gun several times on Bell Street in Smithville, striking a home occupied by a woman and her three children," the TBI press release reads.

The indictment obtained by Fox News Digital states that Stanford "unlawfully, intentionally and recklessly" fired his weapon, which struck and passed through a chair on a front porch of a home and through a front living room wall, putting the occupants at risk of death or serious bodily injury. The indictment further states that no one inside the home was injured in the shooting.

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The fugitive Stanford was apparently pursuing is tied to a Nov. 20 triple homicide.

On Nov. 21, TBI began investigating the incident involving Stanford, who allegedly "fired shots during the attempted apprehension of a man named Caleb Brookins on outstanding warrants out of Warren County, TN," according to Bryant Dunaway, 13th Judicial District Attorney.

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Dunaway added that the incident was "[r]elated to the actions of a woman named Hannah Rose."

On the morning of Nov. 20, Warren County Sheriff's Office deputies located three deceased people on Merry Oaks Road. Authorities initially arrested their first suspect, Jessica Root, in connection with the three homicides and eventually located Brookins, their second suspect, in a vehicle that Rose was driving, the Warren County Sheriff's Office said.

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A Homeland Security officer was injured during Brookins' arrest on Nov. 21.

Brookins and Root are charged with three counts of criminal homicide, and Rose is charged with aggravated assault and felony evading arrest for striking a law enforcement officer with her vehicle while attempting to flee.

Stanford turned himself in to the DeKalb County Jail earlier this week and was later released after posting $10,000 bond.

Fox News Digital has reached out to Stanford's office for comment.