The family of a North Carolina man said he was “out of it” when he fatally shot a Department of Corrections worker who ran over his 17-year-old son.
The incident happened just before 6:30 a.m. Monday when Chad Woods ran out of gas on the side of a highway.
Woods, his son, J.R. Woods and the teen’s mother were walking to their home less than a mile away to get a gas can.
Police say the three were walking in the middle of the road when a Department of Corrections truck driven by Jeffrey McKay slammed into J.R., killing him.
McKay stopped his truck and called 911 to report the accident. Moments later, Woods pulled out a gun and shot McKay.
Then Woods and the boy’s mom got into McKay’s truck and drove home, leaving both bodies lying in the roadway.
“He was just out of it, going off and stuff. He was going, ‘He just he killed my son. He killed my son,'” Woods’ father, Lawrence Claiborne, told WTVD.
Police went to Woods’ home after identifying the body of his son. Woods was charged with second-degree murder and theft of a motor vehicle.
He is due in court on August 21.
Woods told police he tossed the gun into a nearby pond. Police called off a search for the gun on Monday due to extreme heat.
“This is kind of a first,” Sgt. Kevin Morris told WTVD. “I’ve been to people struck by cars and I’ve been to shootings, but I haven’t ever had this happen at the same time. Sad situation all around, for all the families.”
Watch the news report below.
