An armed father shot and killed a person at a Washington State dog park after he allegedly threatened the lifetime of his child, authorities said.
The 28-year-old father opened fire at the person who was “acting erratically” near him and his young child at Randall Park dog park in Yakima, police said.
The person who was killed, identified by police as 22-year-old Daniel Ortega of Yakima, “attempted to endanger the lifetime of the small child along with his words and actions,” police said.
Police said the 28-year-old father asked Ortega to go away his family alone as he tried to go away the park. His attempts to verbally de-escalate the situation failed and the person shot Ortega with a legally owned firearm, killing him, police said.
After police interviewed multiple witnesses, the 28-year-old man, who can be from Yakima, was discharged after cooperating with detectives, cops said.
Police will forward their findings to the Yakima County prosecutors who will determine whether the shooter is charged with a criminal offense.
Police haven’t said exactly what Ortega’s “erratic” behavior was, or what words or actions caused the person to consider he was endangering the lifetime of the kid. It’s also unclear if he was armed.
Ortega’s friend, Terrence Niles, told the Yakima Herald-Republic that Ortega struggled with mental health and homelessness. For a period in 2022, Niles said he went missing and no person knew where he was.
“Was it justifiable? Or did my friend get killed for his mental stability?” Niles said. “We’d like more details about him supposedly putting the kid at risk.“
“How will we get thus far? How does he find yourself dying all by himself?” he added.
