Dad of Sparks school shooter hit son in 2012
SPARKS — The father of the Sparks Middle School shooter pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor child abuse charge last year after he self-reported to school counselors his son struck him and the father hit him back, blackening the boy’s eye.
Deputy Washoe County District Attorney John Helzer said Thursday Jose Reyes originally was charged with a felony after he hit his then 10-year-old son, Jose, in the nose and face in January 2012.
But Helzer said he supported dropping the charge to a misdemeanor because Reyes cooperated fully with law enforcement officers, who determined he had been involved in “no other incidents remotely similar.”
KOLO-TV first reported on the arrest Wednesday.
Police are investigating whether Reyes might have illegally allowed his son access to the handgun the boy used to kill a teacher and wound two classmates before committing suicide on Oct. 21.
