Shot girl's dad: I drank vodka as I cleaned guns

updated 7:27 a.m. ET Nov. 19, 2008

MARYSVILLE, Wash. - A father arrested after his 6-year-old daughter was fatally shot in their Washington state home allegedly told authorities he had been drinking double shots of vodka while cleaning his guns.

Court papers say Richard Peters told detectives he had asked his daughter, Stormy, to bring him the .45-caliber handgun Sunday. He said he must have pulled the trigger, and the girl fell to the floor. She was pronounced dead Monday.

Bail for Peters, 42, was set Monday at $250,000. He has been arrested for investigation of first-degree manslaughter.

His attorney, Annika Carlsten, requested that Peters be released from jail, The Herald newspaper of Everett reported. She argued that Peters isn't a flight risk, or a danger to himself or the community.

"It's obviously a tragedy for all involved and my primary concern is for my client and his family," Carlsten told The Associated Press on Tuesday night, declining to discuss any specifics.

The Snohomish County sheriff's office said two other children were removed from the home by Child Protective Services.

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