Cypress gun range employee could get 20 years in shooting death of a father
CYPRESS, Texas (KTRK) -- A Harris County grand jury indicted a 21-year-old employee of a Cypress gun range in the fatal shooting of a guest.
The father of triplets was killed in the December shooting, just 13 days before Christmas.
Tyler Wayne Sutton was indicted on a charge of felony manslaughter, calling the fatal shooting "unlawful and reckless."
Sutton was servicing a rifle inside the shooting range building when he allegedly pulled the trigger "without checking to see if the weapon was loaded,' the indictment states.
At that same moment, 36-year-old Joshua Cummings was in the parking lot, preparing to walk to the range. The bullet struck him in the head.
RELATED: Cypress father of triplets killed in shooting range tragedy
Cummings died before the Life Flight helicopter arrived at Memorial Hermann Hospital. He was a respected employee and colleague at Centerpoint Energy.
The Cummings family attorney was aware of the indictment but had no comment on it. A lawsuit against the gun range was filed earlier.
Sutton is expected to surrender in court when a bond hearing is held. No warrant for his arrest has been issued. Felony manslaughter carries the possibilty of up to 20 years in prison, if convicted.
"I have been around firearms my entire life, and this sad case is a perfect example that no matter how much experience one has with firearms, you must treat every firearm as if it were loaded," said prosecutor Jim Leitner. "Presuming a firearm isn't loaded is always a recipe for disaster."
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