Sebring couple to face charges in child’s death

By Jon Moffett

A detective described this as a tragic accident.

YOUNGSTOWN — The parents of a toddler who died of a gunshot wound will face charges in court today.

Douglas Foor, 25, and Amanda Saunier, 24, of Sebring, will appear before Judge Dianne Vetorri at 11 a.m. in Mahoning County Court in Sebring.

Both are charged with two counts of child endangering. Foor is also charged with a count of involuntary manslaughter. Their 2-year-old son, Jacob, was killed after he accidentally shot himself in the chest with a handgun Nov. 13, 2008.

One count of child endangering is in connection with Jacob; the other is for the pair’s 1-year-old daughter, Hannah, who was also in the family’s Smith Township mobile home at the time of the accident.

Smith Township police took Foor and Saunier into custody Monday.

Detective Terry Rockwell said the child-endangering charges have a maximum sentence of five years and minimum of one year in prison upon conviction. The involuntary-manslaughter charge has a maximum of 10 years in prison and a minimum of three on conviction.

According to the police report, the shooting happened shortly after 9 a.m. The boy’s grandmother, Sherry Grosenbaugh, 44, called 911 to report the incident.

Jacob was taken from Tecumseh Village Mobile Home to Alliance Community Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The handgun — a 9mm semiautomatic — belonged to Foor, a part-time Minerva Police officer, but was not his service gun. Two other guns, Foor’s Glock .40 and a Winchester 16-gauge shotgun, were also located in the trailer. All three were confiscated by police.

Rockwell said, after reviewing evidence, that Jacob had the barrel of the gun pointing toward his chest and pulled the trigger with both thumbs. He described this as a tragic accident, but said the situation should have been avoided.

“As police officers, the first thing we’re taught is gun safety,” he said.

Chief Robert First of the Minerva Police Department did not return a call seeking comment.

jmoffett@vindy.com