Police investigating homicide, attempted suicide in northeast Modesto. Girl, 8, killed
An 8-year-old girl apparently was fatally shot by her father Wednesday night in northeast Modesto while police officers were trying to get him to surrender.
Shortly before 7 p.m., police were dispatched to the 3700 block of Havenhurst Court, just northwest of Claus Road and Briggsmore Avenue, in response to a report of a suicidal subject, according to a Modesto Police Department news release later in the night.
Officers could see the armed man through a window and immediately attempted to communicate with him. The man, later identified as 50-year-old Donovan Halstead, said he would come out unarmed, the release says. But before he did so, officers heard gunshots from inside the home.
Upon entering the residence, officers found Halstead suffering from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. His 8-year-old daughter also was found, seriously injured from a gunshot wound. Despite lifesaving measures, she died at the scene. No one else was in the home, MPD spokewoman Sharon Bear told The Bee.
Halstead was taken to a hospital for treatment but is not expected to survive, police said. As of midmorning Thursday, he remained alive, Bear said.
The Police Department’s Violent Crimes Unit is investigating the incident.
The mother of the 8-year-old girl, filed a petition for divorce on April and petitioned for a domestic violence restraining order Monday, according to Superior Court records.
Donovan Halstead posted a fairly normal array of photos and messages in the past year. Last month, a Father’s Day post showed his daughter asleep in bed. “Being a father is a challenging endeavor,” his post said. “There is no greater gift we will receive in our life than the love of our kids.”
In an August 2022 post, Halstead indicated he struggled with depression and anxiety. “I’m going to throw something out here that I wouldn’t normally make public and I’m certainly not comfortable discussing openly. Depression, and anxiety. Clinical depression to be less vague. An affliction I have struggled with most of my life.”
The post said he was taking an anxiety medication.
No additional information has been released by authorities.
