Woman admits blasting dad to death in horror slaughter after last minute U-turn
A young woman in New Mexico has admitted to shooting her father dead, initially claiming he had been abusing her for most of her life, although this was quickly disputed by authorities.
After pleading guilty to one count of murder, Summer Coughran, 28, is facing significant prison time over the killing, which took place earlier this year and resulted in the death of 65-year-old Kirk Coughran.
Officers with the Albuquerque Police Department entered the Coughran family home on January 20 after receiving reports of a shooting taking place. The defendant reportedly made a 911 call at around 3 a.m. that night, and told police that she shot her father, as per an arrest report obtained by Us Weekly.
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Upon entering the home, police found the victim deceased. It was later determined by investigators that Coughran had been dead for at least 15 hours before they arrived at the property.
At first, the accused told police that her father had attacked her and that the use of the gun was in self-defense. She also said that her father had been abusing her throughout her life.
After further digging, however, police began to doubt Summer Coughran’s claims due to glaring inconsistencies in her account. The officials were particularly unconvinced when the defendant was unable to describe any of the alleged ongoing abuse she claimed her father had inflicted on her.Summer was also unable to describe the events that happened on the fateful night that caused her to be so in fear for her life that she turned a gun on her father. According to authorities, the woman’s narrative didn’t align with the evidence found at the scene; however, they did not disclose details of the apparent discrepancies.
Meanwhile, as the investigation continued, law enforcement learned that the accused had been the subject of other police reports involving her family. In these reports, the daughter was alleged as the aggressor and the father the alleged victim, but Kirk Coughran had decided not to press charges when it came to those cases.
More details emerged when one report claimed that Summer Coughran was suffering from the psychiatric disorder schizophrenia, and that she may have stopped taking her prescribed medication.
The previous offenses included a charge back in December 2024, as Summer was accused of aggravated assault on a peace officer. Within days of this, a restraining order was granted to another family member against Summer Coughran, who had allegedly made violent threats toward them.
Despite mounting evidence, she remained adamant that her actions in killing her father were in self-defense, and her attorneys argued the theory in court, according to Albuquerque Fox affiliate KRQE. She has since pleaded guilty to the murder.
