Man who told 911 daughter shot herself ordered to stand trial on murder charges
NORMAN, Okla. -- Evidence shows an Oklahoma woman whose father told 911 she shot herself couldn't have died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, a detective reportedly testified Monday at a hearing during which the father was ordered to stand trial for her murder. Special Judge Steve Stice ruled there was enough evidence to send the case of 43-year-old Ronald Lee McMullen to trial, reports the Oklahoman.
According to CBS affiliate KWTV, McMullen called 911 around 5:42 a.m. on June 29, 2017 and said that his daughter, Kailee, 22, was shot in the face. He said in the call obtained by the Oklahoman that the former high school cheerleader was "playing with a wheel-gun" in their Norman home and when he tried to take it from her, it went off.
Norman Police, however, said the evidence at the scene didn't match his story, and Ronald McMullen was arrested several days later and charged with first-degree murder.
In a preliminary hearing Monday, Detective Brian Franks testified gunshot residue showed Kailee was shot from a distance of about 18 inches, which would have been "outside of her reach," the Oklahoman reports.
According to an affidavit for a search warrant filed in Cleveland County on July 6 and obtained by KWTV, when police responded to the home, they found a large amount of blood and signs that someone had apparently tried to clean it. Police officers on the scene took photos of Ronald McMullen and investigators noted he wiped areas with blood "and officers had to physically restrain him from doing so several times."
And after photos were taken, the court documents said Ronald got on the ground and "began covering himself in dirt." The document went on to say that when an officer picked him up, "Ronald had dug a small hole while covering himself in dirt."
When asked about trying to clean the blood, McMullen told police, "I don't know why I did that," reports the Oklahoman. He also allegedly moved his daughter's body from the kitchen to the living room after the shooting, the paper reports.
Police have said McMullen was reported to be a "very controlling father" and his wife testified that he would track Kailee's phone, the Oklahoman reports.
The father had previously been accused of sexually abusing his daughter in 2009, but wasn't charged, the paper reports.
Those close to Kailee described her as a beautiful soul with a passion for helping others. She worked as an EMT.
