Inset: David Keith Thornton (Broward County Jail). Background: The 1500 block of Southwest Fifth Avenue in Pompano Beach, Florida, where Thornton allegedly shot his girlfriend and her daughter (WTVJ).
A Florida man is accused of fatally shooting his girlfriend and her daughter in an attack captured on 911 audio, with one of the victims begging him to "put the gun down."
David Keith Thornton, 64, is facing two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of his 66-year-old girlfriend Suzanne Travers Courtade and her 23-year-old daughter Meghan Courtade, the Broward County Sheriff's Office said in a press release.
Deputies responded to a report of a shooting around 7:21 p.m. Thursday in the 1500 block of Southwest Fifth Avenue in Pompano Beach.
Suzanne Courtade called 911 and told dispatchers "my daughter was shot by a pellet gun and is unconscious." Dispatchers heard her asking for a neighbor's help and then screaming "Dave put the gun down, put the gun down," a probable cause arrest affidavit said.
Several gunshots rang out. Neighbors called 911.
When deputies arrived, they found both victims dead in the street. Investigators recovered five spent .380-caliber shell casings near Thornton's vehicle and two spent 9 mm casings by another home.
Thornton came out with his hands up and said there were weapons in the home, the affidavit stated. Cops allegedly found weapons in the home matching the caliber of the recovered shell casings.
One neighbor told investigators she heard what she thought were loud fireworks. A short time later, she heard knocking on her door. It was Suzanne Courtade saying that her daughter was unconscious and not breathing. The neighbor went to the younger Courtade and found her lying on the ground.
"While trying to assist Meghan, Thornton approached her and Suzanne and told [the neighbor], 'This has nothing to do with you, go back inside,'" cops wrote.
The neighbor said Thornton was holding a "dark object" in his hand that she believed was a gun, the complaint said. She ran to her home and heard several gunshots.
Thornton, his girlfriend and her daughter had lived in the neighborhood for nearly two decades, the neighbor told cops.
The suspect declined to speak with investigators. He remains in the Broward County Jail without bond.
Neighbor Douglas Newton told local ABC affiliate WPLG that the victims were a special part of the neighborhood.
"Never any trouble. The kids (were) the same way," he said. "They were outgoing, part of the neighborhood, you know? Very influential."
Suzanne Courtade worked for the town of Lauderdale-by-the-Sea. Mayor Edmund Malkoon said in a statement she will be deeply missed.
"Sue was a truly wonderful person whose kindness, warmth, and dedication touched so many lives," he said. "She was more than a valued member of our Town family. She was someone who genuinely cared about others and took great pride in serving our community."