Rick Kaufman: Father of Nashville ICU nurse, 26, shot dead in road rage incident lunges at suspects in court
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE: The grieving father of a Tennessee nurse who was fatally shot in a 2020 road rage incident was seen lunging at the suspects before being restrained by court staff on November 16, 2022. At a preliminary hearing before their trial, Hoffman reportedly charged toward the two men accused of fatally shooting his daughter as he had met them in person for the first time. He was restrained and escorted out of the Nashville courtroom by the bailiffs.
James Cowan and Devaunte Hill have been accused of murdering Caitlyn Kaufman, 26. On December 3, 2020, the ICU nurse was driving during rush hour on I-440 on her way to work at Ascension St Thomas Hospital at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic when she crossed Cowan and Hill. According to a police source, Hill became upset when Kaufman cut them off and started firing at her car.
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After being struck, the Pennsylvania native was able to move her car to the side, but she passed away before she could dial 911. Hill and Cowan are accused of criminal homicide. Additionally, a woman was detained and accused of hiding one of the suspects. As Cowan and Hill reentered the courtroom on November 16, Kaufman was permitted back in and wiped tears from his eyes, according to the New York Post. Recently, a lead investigator described in court how a responding officer saw Kaufman's car off to the side of the highway and presumed it had been in an accident.
"There was a parks officer, I believe he was on his way home. He drove by and he thought that it was a wreck. He thought a vehicle had rammed through the guardrail," Sgt Chris Dickerson testified. "So, at first, he went by, and he was able to flip around, and he went up on the vehicle and he realized it had several bullet holes in the vehicle and then he realized there was an individual slumped over the steering wheel, so he positioned his vehicle in front of her and I believe he called additional units," he added.
When the officer got closer, he saw Kaufman slouched over the wheel. Her foot was still on the brake, and the automobile was still moving. Six days after the incident, Hill was detained and about a month later, Cowan was detained after two pistols were discovered in his car. According to police, mobile phone data showed that both guys were in the area of the shooting and that they both had prior criminal records. A trial in the matter is set for January 2023. The suspects are facing life in prison.