The Denver man accused of shooting his young son in the leg told police that the shooting was an accident that happened when he grabbed a gun during a fight with his wife.
According to court documents released Wednesday, William Thalley said he pulled the gun from a dresser drawer while thinking about killing himself. Thalley told a detective that the gun went off unexpectedly, hitting his 3-year- old son in the leg.
The boy suffered serious injuries but has been released from the hospital.
Thalley, 29, is being held on suspicion of child abuse resulting in serious injury. His wife, 25-year-old Nicole Fernandez, is being held for investigation of a conspiracy charge because police say she helped Thalley attempt to cover up the shooting.
The fight began Sunday evening at the family’s home on West Alaska Place in southwest Denver. Fernandez told police that she told Thalley she was going to leave him and that Thalley said, “I want to kill myself,” according to court records.
Thalley said that when he grabbed the gun and spun around, the gun discharged. Thalley told police that he grabbed his son’s leg and held it tightly to stop the bleeding, according to the probable-cause statement detailing the police investigation.
Thalley and Fernandez said they drove to Berkeley Lake, at West 46th Avenue and Sheridan Boulevard, and threw the gun in the lake before driving to St. Anthony Central Hospital. At the hospital, workers called police, and Thalley initially told officers that his son had been hit in a drive-by shooting by an unknown attacker.
But the ruse soon crumbled, and Thalley admitted to being the shooter, saying he had been worried about the consequences, according to his probable- cause statement. Fernandez told police she had left the hospital and gone back home to remove a bloody blanket and clean the scene, according to her probable-cause statement.
Thalley and Fernandez are barred from having contact with their son. The couple has at least one other child, who has been placed with relatives, police said.
John Ingold: 303-954-1068 or jingold@denverpost.com
