Moments after her father shot her mother, Kimberly Prifti stood between them and called 911, according to police.
“He’s still in the kitchen with the gun. My mom is on the ground, still in the kitchen. He’s just looking at her — and he pointed the gun at me,” she told a Fairlawn police dispatcher. “I’m standing in front of him while I’m on the phone.”
The dispatcher urged the 19-year-old to find safety. But she refused to leave her wounded mother.
“I have to protect my mom,” the teenager said through tears.
“Ma’am, I need you to get out of the house,” the dispatcher said. “We will protect your mother.”
“No, I can’t,” she said. “I have to stay here.”
According to police reports, Theresa “Terry” Morgan was shot by George Prifti shortly before 5 p.m. Feb. 28 in their Stratford Road home.
The two were arguing about living arrangements when Prifti — who was intoxicated — got a gun from the basement, told Morgan, “You’re gone” and fired, according to police. The blast struck Morgan in the upper right torso, but did not kill her.
Prifti then pointed the gun at his daughter, but did not fire, and pointed it at himself, but again did not fire, according to reports. He dropped the gun, and that’s when their youngest daughter called police.
Dispatchers urged the teen to try to convince her father to leave the house with his hands up, but he refused. After ensuring he did not have access to any other weapons, police and paramedics entered the home. The teen told authorities her father attempted to retrieve the shotgun before police entered, seemingly to kill himself.
Police arrested Prifti on charges of domestic violence and felonious assault. He’s being held at the Summit County Jail.
According to an online fundraiser set up to help pay Morgan’s medical expenses, Morgan — a mother of five — was taken to a local hospital with severe wounds. Surgeons repaired internal organs, but fragments from the shotgun blast could remain.
The online GoFundMe fundraiser, goo.gl/uKOyUa, has raised more than $4,000 in two days. Planners hope to raise $15,000.
“Terry is an incredibly strong woman and mother who survived this horrible tragedy thanks to her strength and the bravery of her youngest daughter and local officers,” fundraiser organizers wrote. “As a result of that night, Terry is going to need help with extensive medical expenses, lost wages, counseling services and house bills while she recovers.”
Nick Glunt can be reached at 330-996-3565 or nglunt@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @NickGluntABJ and on Facebook @JournoNickGlunt .