Man arrested after allegedly drinking bottle of tequila and shooting his sister in the head

Samuel Deatherage, 21, of Tecumseh, has been held in the Ozark County Jail without bond since he was arrested Aug. 30 for allegedly opening fire on a group of family members including three children while in an intoxicated state after drinking nearly a full 750 milliliter bottle of tequila by himself. In the process, he reportedly shot his sister in the head. The bullet entered her head in the forehead region. 

Deatherage now faces a class A felony of assault in the first degree, causing serious physical injury, the class B felony of shooting at a person and the unclassified felony of armed criminal action. If convicted of the class A felony, Deatherage would be sentenced to 10 years or life imprisonment. He is scheduled to appear in court today before Associate Judge Raymond Gross for a bond reduction hearing. The results of that hearing were unavailable at presstime. 

According to the probable cause statement filed in the case by Ozark County Sheriff’s Lt. Matt Rhoades, the officer responded to a reported shooting in Tecumseh around 8 p.m. Aug. 30. 

The 911 dispatch log from the call indicates that the call came through, the reporting party indicated that Deatherage was intoxicated and belligerent and began shooting at them. While taking the call, the dispatcher heard screams and multiple gunshots sounding in the background, the log indicates. 

The person on the phone indicated that Deatherage’s 19-year-old sister, Anna, had been shot in the head but was still conscious and speaking. The dispatcher spoke briefly with Anna, and the phone was handed off to their mother. She confirmed that Samuel’s father and brother were able to get the suspect onto the ground and subdue him, although he was combative and was attempting to fight them off, the log says.

When Rhoades arrived on scene, he located Samuel, who reportedly told the officer in a “spontaneous statement” that he had accidently shot his sister in the head when he was carrying a gun to his parents and tripped and fell, the report says. 

Rhoades notes in his report that Anna was shot in the top of the forehead, but surprisingly with the bullet wound to the head, she was alert and conscious. 

Rhoades interviewed three victims/witnesses at the scene. “They stated they were just at the house for a short period, and the suspect got angry and grabbed a Draco AK-47 variant pistol and started yelling threats. They all ran outside into the backyard where it was dark, and [where] they could hide. [Anna] hid behind a truck that was parked in the yard. A bullet passed through the rear and front windows of the truck and struck [her] in the head. The witnesses stated they believed that [Samuel] was coming out to kill them all,” the report states. “The suspect fired between 10 to 15 rounds at the victims. There were seven victims in total... only one was struck. Three victims were under the age of 18.”

According to the victims and the suspect, Samuel was heavily intoxicated during the incident. He voluntarily submitted to a breathalyzer test about two and a half hours after the incident, which showed he had a blood alcohol content of .193 percent, the report says. Samuel told the officer that he drank nearly an entire 750 milliliter bottle of 40 percent tequila by himself. 

The probable cause statement indicates that the victims desired prosecution. He was arrested at the scene and transported to the Ozark County Jail. 

When a Facebook post was shared to the Ozark County Sheriff’s page about the incident, Anna commented: “I am the one who was shot in the head, and I would just like to say that at this time hateful comments and threats that have been made are not what my family needs right now. Yes, it is a deviating incident, but my family is torn to pieces... over this, and if anything, we are all just happy to be alive right now. My brother doesn’t deserve to be talked badly about online from nasty people hiding behind their phone screen typing ugly messages.”

Samuel’s and Anna’s parents Sam Sr. and Trish also released a statement in the comments of the post: “It was a horrible, terrible thing that happened that evening. There is no denying that. It’s still hard for us to wrap our heads around it. Our hearts are hurting very much. However, we are thankful to the Lord that all of our children are still alive. Our family is a team, and if one of us falls, we will do our best to help them get back on track. With our actions, come consequences, but whatever may come, we will be here for all of our children, always. We will get through this. Together, we are stronger.”