Two arrested during investigation of shot fired at Horizon Apartments

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Darien Lee Daniels, 22, and D-onna Lashawn Miller, 30, were arrested last night during an investigation of a gunshot fired at Horizon Apartments; Daniels was charged with two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and Miller was charged with tampering with evidence.

At about 10:45 p.m., Gainesville Police Department officers responded to Horizon Apartments (1515 NW 10th Street) and found two victims who said Daniels had pointed a gun at them and that the gun had fired while they were trying to disarm him.

The first victim said he had come to the apartment where the shooting occurred to pick up his child from the child’s mother; during an argument about whether the first victim would let the child’s mother close the door to her apartment, Daniels reportedly came out of a back bedroom and began arguing with the first victim. The first victim said Daniels brandished a handgun and pointed it at him, at which point he fled the apartment.

The second victim said he had come to the apartment complex with the first victim, his brother. He said he heard his brother shout, “Run!” and when he turned around, he saw Daniels standing outside the apartment, pointing a handgun at them. He said he tried to disarm Daniels, the handgun went off in the struggle, and the gun fell to the ground floor near the apartment.

A resident of a nearby apartment reportedly told an officer that she saw one of the victims wrestle the gun from Daniels and toss it over the upstairs railing.

Miller, who lives downstairs from the apartment where the shooting occurred, reportedly said she was inside her apartment when she heard a fight upstairs. She said she heard a gunshot and went outside, where she saw people fighting upstairs and then saw one of the men throw a gun to the ground. She said she picked up the gun and put it in her apartment.

A witness told an officer that a woman in a dark dress had picked up the gun, and they questioned Miller, who was wearing a dark dress; she eventually admitted that she had put the gun in her apartment. She allowed officers to remove the firearm from a duffle bag inside her apartment.

Post Miranda, Miller reportedly said she had seen the gun thrown from the balcony and had picked it up and hidden it in her apartment. She said she had planned to take it to the Horizon leasing office the next day. When asked why she had not given it to officers, she reportedly said she didn’t know.

The arresting officer noted that officers had been in the area of Miller’s apartment for about 30 minutes before they spoke with her and that she had been walking around outside the whole time and never made any attempt to provide information about the gun to officers.

Post Miranda, Daniels reportedly said he had gotten into a fight with the two victims during the argument about whether the first victim would let the child’s mother close the apartment door. He said he tried to help close the door and was hit in the face by the first victim. He reportedly admitted he’d had a gun in the pocket of his hoodie, that he’d brandished the firearm toward the two victims, and that he’d left the apartment to chase the first victim while holding the gun. He said he never pointed the gun at anyone and did not intentionally fire the gun, but he reportedly admitted the gun discharged while it was in his hand.

According to the arrest report, the only injuries were to Daniels, who had a cut on his forehead and a scratch on his upper lip.

Daniels has one misdemeanor conviction for domestic battery and recently served six months in the Alachua County Jail after violating his probation in that case. He is being held without bail on the new charges.

Miller has no local criminal history, and she has been released from the jail.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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