According to the arrest report obtained by Fox 5 in Atlanta, 42-year-old Dante Daugherty had pulled into a Texaco in Lithonia, Georgia, 20 miles from downtown Atlanta. He left a loaded gun in the car. The two sons, ages 6 and 7, got out of the car with him to run around, before getting back in the car.
As Daughterty entered the store, he heard a shot ring out and rushed back to the car as the 6-year-old ran from the vehicle. Daugherty discovered that his elder son with a gunshot wound to his head. He died a short time later. It is not clear whether the 7-year-old shot himself or was shot by his brother.
DeKalb County officers placed the grieving father under arrest on two counts of second-degree child cruelty and one count of second-degree murder for leaving his gun in the presence of his young sons.
Daugherty was taken to the DeKalb County Jail where he remains on Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2023.
