Florida: Richard Dennis was startled when he heard someone banging on his backdoor around 11.30pm on Tuesday, authorities say. The 61-year-old gripped a gun as he stepped outside his home in Gulf Breeze, Florida. When he saw a person jump out of the bushes, he pulled the trigger.
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Only then did Dennis realise who the person was: his son-in-law.
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Christopher Bergan had flown from Norway, where he and his wife live, to get to the Florida Panhandle. It was supposed to be a birthday surprise for Dennis, who was turning 62 the next day. Instead, it was a tragedy: The bullet hit Bergan “straight in the heart,” Santa Rosa County Sheriff Bob Johnson said, killing the 37-year-old instantly.
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Calling the shooting a “tragic accident,” authorities announced on Thursday that they wouldn’t be pursuing criminal charges against Dennis.
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“I’ll tell you this much: Anybody who’s religious out there, you need to pray for this family because this is — I can’t imagine what they’re going through,” Johnson said during a news conference. “I really can’t. It’s horrible.”
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In a coincidence that may have contributed to Dennis’ state of mind the night of the shooting, another relative had pounded on his front door at about 9.30pm. The two had a “verbal altercation,” Johnson said, and Dennis chased that relative off.
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Bergan probably didn’t know that when he landed at the airport around 11pm and headed to Dennis’ house. A Norwegian citizen, Bergan had lived in Florida for years before returning to his native country with his wife.
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After Dennis realised whom he’d shot, the family quickly called 911. They pressed towels to his chest in a desperate attempt to stop the bleeding, authorities said. But it was too late.
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Because of the earlier confrontation, the sheriff said, he wasn’t going to “second-guess” Dennis.
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“I mean, here he is, he just had a confrontation at the front of his house,” Johnson said. “A couple hours later, someone else is banging on his backdoor. It’s a fenced yard, somebody jumps out of his bushes — you can’t really say anything against Mr Dennis for doing what he did. I think it was just a horrible accident that should never have happened.”
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The family was devastated by what happened. In an interview with Oxygen.com, neighbour Patty Munzell described Dennis as “a kind man.” He has “lost a best friend,” she said.
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“I think that it will take a long time for the family to heal,” Munzell said, “if ever.”
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