John Jefferson
Inset: Sean William Wollard (Broward County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The home where Wollard allegedly shot his wife in the neck (Google Maps).
A 27-year-old man in Florida has been arrested after he allegedly shot his wife in the neck by accident, telling the police that the mishap took place as he was putting his gun away right after he “did some cocaine.”
Sean William Wollard was taken into custody on Monday and charged with one weapon offense — using a firearm while under the influence, records reviewed by Law&Crime show.
According to a probable cause affidavit, deputies with the Broward County Sheriff’s Office at about 1:37 a.m. on Monday, Nov. 25, responded to a report of a shooting at a home in the 1200 block of SW 28th Road in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, just under 30 miles north of Miami.
Once there, first responders said they located a woman who appeared to have suffered a gunshot wound through the neck. Wollard was at the scene and holding a blanket to the victim’s neck wound.
A deputy ordered Wollard to move away from the victim, noting that he was “hesitant, but eventually got up.” While emergency medical personnel were rendering aid to the victim, she told authorities that the shooting “was an accident” and added that Woolard “didn’t mean to do it.”
Paramedics transported the victim to Broward Health Medical Center for treatment. Doctors provided authorities with a preliminary report stating that the victim could be paralyzed from the neck down due to the gunshot wound.
While deputies were on the scene, Wollard allegedly made several unprompted and incriminating statements, the affidavit said.
“The defendant stated, ‘We were looking for the cat all day, we came inside, turned on a movie and did some cocaine,’” the affidavit states. “I went to put away the firearm and the gun went off.”
Officers read Wollard his Miranda rights at which point they said he refused to continue discussing the shooting. However, investigators said that Wollard did make several additional unprompted statements, claiming that “he doesn’t remember much and his memory was foggy.”
While inside Wollard’s home, authorities said there were several opened bottles of alcohol in view as well as a “white powdery substance” on a coffee table in plain view.
“Three firearms were located in the same room, two were in holsters, however, the firearm used in the incident was not secure,” the affidavit states. “The defendant did physically and intentionally handle the firearm while under the influence of cocaine, as described by the defendant. The Defendant did discharge the firearm while in possession of the firearm, which struck the victim.”
Police said Wollard and his wife have been legally married since 2018.
Wollard made his initial court appearance on Wednesday when a judge set his bond at $15,000. He was released after posting bond under the condition that he wear a GPS monitor and undergo a substance abuse evaluation within 10 days. He will also be subject to random drug and alcohol testing and is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition while the case remains open.
Read the full article here