Man arrested in deadly shooting at Redmond party
REDMOND, Wash. -- Police in Redmond have arrested a 21-year-old man who they say is responsible for the shooting death of a young Seattle woman at a weekend party.
Police spokesman Jim Bove said officers arrested Cornelius DeJong IV for investigation of first-degree manslaughter.
Investigators believe DeJong fired a .40-caliber handgun while at a party early Sunday morning. The bullet went through a wall and hit a 20-year-old woman who was at the party and standing on the other side.
"We do believe that it was due to reckless handling of the gun that caused it to go off," Bove said. "We do not believe it was premeditated."
According to court documents, a man who call 911 to report the shooting told dispatchers "my best friend shot a girl in the house, he was drunk."
Medics responded to the home in the 16800 block of NE 97th Street at about 3:30 a.m. and found the woman with a gunshot wound to the neck.
She was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle where she died. Her name has not been released.
DeJong has a concealed weapon permit, according to the court documents, and placed the weapon in a safe at the home since he would be drinking.
At one point another person wanted to see the gun, so DeJong took it out of the safe, removed the magazine and cleared the chamber before letting several people handle the weapon.
While handling the gun again later, DeJong removed the magazine and pulled the slide back part way, according to witnesses.
He pointed the gun at a wall and pulled the trigger in an attempt to show that the gun was empty, the documents said, but there was still a live round in the chamber.
Police spokesman Jim Bove said officers arrested Cornelius DeJong IV for investigation of first-degree manslaughter.
Investigators believe DeJong fired a .40-caliber handgun while at a party early Sunday morning. The bullet went through a wall and hit a 20-year-old woman who was at the party and standing on the other side.
"We do believe that it was due to reckless handling of the gun that caused it to go off," Bove said. "We do not believe it was premeditated."
According to court documents, a man who call 911 to report the shooting told dispatchers "my best friend shot a girl in the house, he was drunk."
Medics responded to the home in the 16800 block of NE 97th Street at about 3:30 a.m. and found the woman with a gunshot wound to the neck.
She was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle where she died. Her name has not been released.
DeJong has a concealed weapon permit, according to the court documents, and placed the weapon in a safe at the home since he would be drinking.
At one point another person wanted to see the gun, so DeJong took it out of the safe, removed the magazine and cleared the chamber before letting several people handle the weapon.
While handling the gun again later, DeJong removed the magazine and pulled the slide back part way, according to witnesses.
He pointed the gun at a wall and pulled the trigger in an attempt to show that the gun was empty, the documents said, but there was still a live round in the chamber.
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