A Portsmouth man shot his mother-in-law on Sunday night. Surprisingly, she’s not even a little bit mad at him. Kathy Lockert says it was all an accident. She blames police for overcharging 29-year-old Francisco DeLeon. “I think it’s crazy because they’re trying to put a bunch of junk on him.”
Lockert says DeLeon is a good husband and a great dad. So, how did this model son-in-law end up wounding a mother-in-law who thinks the world of him? That story is kind of complicated. As many stories that end badly do, it begins with some folks having too much to drink at a party.
The Party
Teia DeLeon is Francisco’s wife and Kathy Lockert’s daughter. She says the whole incident came about because she was just trying to do the right thing.
The DeLeon’s were attending a party. At that party were some teenage girls. Teia says she thought they were about 14 or 15 and that she was concerned because they were drinking and acting in a suggestive manner with adult men.
Other women arrived at the party shortly after. DeLeon says she was shocked when one woman said they were all healthcare workers. DeLeon claims she was concerned about the possibility of them taking COVID-19 back to their patients and called out the woman who claimed to be their boss. After talking with the woman, Teia says she began to suspect that the healthcare story was just that, a story. After watching the behavior of the women, DeLeon confronted her with this allegation, “I told her you’re not a healthcare worker. You’re their pimp.”
In retrospect, DeLeon says she wishes she had just called the cops. But she claims her concern for the teenagers at the party caused her to push the issue. She shared her concerns about the young girls with her husband.
The Fight
Francisco DeLeon confronted his host about the inappropriate behavior of the teen girls at the party. Teia says, “Him and my husband got into words about the situation. I was trying to get my husband to leave.”
While she was trying to leave the party, she says some of the women at the party “came at her” and she fell, injuring her leg. She thought her leg was broken. That’s when Teia called her mother, Kathy Lockert, for help. Lockert drove to the scene of the party to help bring her daughter home.
The Gun
Things did not cool down when the family arrived home. Francisco DeLeon was outraged about his wife’s injuries at the party. Kathy Lockert says, “He was wanting to go back down there and hurt somebody because they hurt his wife. Nobody hurts his wife.”
Both mother and daughter acknowledge that Francisco was drinking. He went into the house and got a gun. According to Teia, “He said nobody’s gonna touch my wife.”
He got into his car, intending to go back. His wife managed to snatch the keys from the ignition. Both women say he was on his way back to the house to put the gun away when it accidentally discharged.
According to Lockert, “We passed each other. It must have went off. It bounced off the road and hit me. I continued to go to my car and I looked down because I felt something warm.”
That was when she realized she’d been shot. She says when she told Francisco what happened, he couldn’t believe it.
The Injuries
The bullet went through Lockert’s calf. She was taken to the hospital for treatment. Fortunately, no surgery was required.
It turns out that Teia’s leg was not broken. It looks like she tore a ligament in her knee. According to Lockert, both women are now limping around.
The Police Report
- The report from Portsmouth Police tells a different story from the one Teia related to me. According to officers:
- Teia told them that a car rolled up and started shooting at the family. She couldn’t give the police a description.
- When officers spoke to Francisco, he denied there were any vehicles in the area at the time of the shooting. Mr. DeLeon also told the police that he didn’t have a gun.
- Officers found shell casings at the scene.
- Witnesses told officers that DeLeon had been shooting a gun in the air before Lockert declared that she’d been shot.
Police arrested Francisco DeLeon and took him to the Scioto County Jail.
The Charges
Francisco DeLeon was charged with:
- Felonious assault
- Probation violation
- Immigration charges
Lockert says she doesn’t feel he should have been charged at all in the shooting. “I even told the detectives I wasn’t pressing charges. He didn’t even know he did it.”
Teia DeLeon says she feels responsible for her husband’s predicament. “He’s a good guy. He was raging. They over-charged him. It was an accident. It probably wouldn’t have happened it I hadn’t opened my mouth. I should have done it the right way and called the law.”
She says she did express her concerns over the safety of the teenagers at the party to the police. Teia is also concerned about her husband being in jail during the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to restrictions on visitation, she’s not been able to see him.
“It’s a tough time. I was trying to help other people, but I got my life messed up.”
DeLeon is due in court for a preliminary hearing on May 22.
