14-Year-Old in Louisiana Shot in the Head While Playing Hide and Seek, Man Charged with Aggravated Assault with a Firearm and Other Crimes

Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana – A man has been charged with aggravated assault with a firearm and other crimes after a 14-year-old in Louisiana was shot in the head while playing hide and seek.

The Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office (CPSO) stated on May 8, 2023, that deputies were summoned to a home in Starks, Louisiana, in regard to a shooting during the early morning hours of May 7.

During the initial inquiry, deputies discovered a 14-year-old girl suffering from a gunshot wound to the back of her head, according to authorities. When CPSO Violent Crimes investigators arrived on the scene, it was revealed that numerous youths were playing hide and seek in the neighborhood and were hiding on the neighbor’s property. When detectives contacted the property owner, David V. Doyle, 58, of Starks, Louisiana, he indicated that he noticed shadows outside his residence and went inside to get his firearm. He then told detectives that he walked back outside and saw people fleeing his property, at which point he began shooting at them and unknowingly hit the girl.

Doyle was arrested and booked into the Calcasieu Correctional Center on charges of aggravated battery, four counts of aggravated assault with a firearm, and illegal discharge of a firearm. His bond is still being processed.

The girl was sent to a hospital outside of town for non-life-threatening injuries.

The probe is still ongoing. Detective Lauren Manuel of the CPSO is the case’s principal investigator.

An arrest is an indication that probable cause exists to believe the subject was involved in the offense alleged. All persons are presumed innocent until proven guilty.