A Tennessee district attorney has been charged with reckless endangerment after shooting at a fugitive but hitting a family’s home while they were inside.
Chris Stanford, whose district includes Van Buren and Warren counties in Middle Tennessee, was indicted by a grand jury on Monday, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said.
The charge is related to a Nov. 21 incident in Smithville, about 60 miles southeast of Nashville, when two suspects were being pursued after three dead bodies were found at a home.
One of the suspects was taken into custody without incident in DeKalb County while Stanford and other law enforcement officials chased after the second suspect, who was a passenger in a car.
The car struck a homeland security officer, who was injured in the crash, at which point Stanford fired his handgun.
“The vehicle then drove toward me and others, accelerating quickly. I fired my service weapon in defense of myself and others at the scene. Based upon my training and the circumstances that presented themselves, I believe my actions were necessary and justified,” Stanford said in a statement to WTVF.
However, instead of hitting the suspect, the bullet went through a chair on the front porch of a house, through the exterior wall and through a living room wall while a woman and her three children were inside. They were unharmed in the incident.
The TBI said in its indictment that Stanford and the other law enforcement officers were not in danger when he fired, adding that he “was not aiming the handgun, that he did not make use of the gun’s sights but just held it out and shot.”
Stanford was released after posting a $10,000 bond following the indictment and his surrender to DeKalb County authorities.
