Arizona 8-year-old girl shot dead in road rage incident after father got into fight with another man
PHOENIX, ARIZONA: An eight-year-old girl was shot dead in front of her family after her father got into a violent fight with a man who fired shots at their car in a road rage incident. Sidney Garrand, 48, was charged with murder after Cassidy Moreno was killed in the incident, according to The Sun.
On October 27, Phoenix police were called to the location of the suspected crime, where they discovered further information about the tragedy. The incident started at a Phoenix four-way intersection after Cassidy's father, 28, and his wife picked up their three girls from school.
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Documents state that the father claimed that Garrand appeared to grow agitated when he turned left in front of him. Garrand swerved his Jeep and pursued the family. According to his version, he drew up next to the car and waved as the father disregarded him. As per AZ Family, the altercation reportedly became violent when Garrand drew up behind the family's vehicle at a light, got out of the car, and hit the father through the open window.
The father asserted that out of concern for his family's safety, he stepped out of the car and responded. According to the paperwork, he got out of the car with a folding knife and "began swinging" before the two got into a fight. Witnesses recounted the horrible incident in which Garrand allegedly gripped the father's neck while he desperately tried to injure him with his knife. Before going back to his car, the father allegedly even managed to stab Garrand close to the neck.
According to accounts, Garrand then took a revolver out of his Jeep's passenger side. The family and witnesses both reported hearing many gunshots. Documents claim that when the mother turned around, she discovered her little daughter bleeding in the backseat.
Authorities rushed Cassidy to the hospital in severe condition after the mother dialled 911. Two days later, she passed away. Garrand was also taken to the hospital, where he was diagnosed with significant injuries to his neck, right shoulder, and upper chest. The father of the girl suffered minor injuries to his fingers.
On October 31, Garrand was taken into custody then booked in a county jail. He is accused of murder and assault.
"I think for us it's a matter of letting people know that she wasn't just the eight-year-old victim," said Cassidy's aunt Thali Vargas. "That she was somebody's daughter, sister, niece. I think for me what's really hard is it didn't have to escalate to that point on either end."
The father claims that Garrand knew the family was in the car as he looked in the backseat before the two fought, court papers allege. "For anyone, it shouldn't have to end this way right?" said Vargas. "An inconvenience on the road shouldn't have to end in, not just for us but that man is now in prison, or jail I'm sorry. Did you get to where you were going? Did you get what you wanted out of the situation?"