Woman shot, killed in domestic dispute

BOUNTIFUL — A woman was killed and her father was seriously injured Sunday when the woman's ex-husband allegedly opened fire on them during a custody exchange in a Bountiful neighborhood.

The identities of the woman — a mother of two said to be in her mid- to late 20s — and her 54-year-old father likely will be released this morning, Bountiful Police Lt. Steve Gray said.

Bountiful police arrested the woman's ex-husband, 29-year-old David Drommond, shortly after the 1:30 p.m. incident — but only after his 9 mm semiautomatic handgun jammed when he apparently tried to shoot himself. Drommond's roommate and several neighbors wrestled the gun away from him, then Drommond fled and was apprehended by the first arriving police officer, Gray said.

The shooting took place outside Drommond's home, near 1700 North and 225 West.

Gray said Drommond apparently planned to kill his ex-wife and then take his own life. Drommond wrote a letter on his computer and printed it out, Gray said, but the contents of that note were not released Sunday.

The couple have two boys, ages 4 and 6, and the woman had a protective order against her ex-husband, Gray said. He said the woman's father went with her to help keep the peace as she brought the two boys to Drommond's house as part of their visitation agreement.

The father-in-law stayed in the car as his daughter escorted her sons to the front door. The boys approached the door first and ran into the house. Then the front door opened further to reveal Drommond, standing there with the handgun, Gray said.

"He shot her once in the head and once in the torso," Gray said. "It looks like it was . . . premeditated."

After his daughter was shot, the 54-year-old man got out of the car and approached Drommond, who then shot his former father-in-law twice — in the arm and the chest. The man was taken to University Hospital in serious condition but was expected to survive, Gray said.

Drommond's roommate, meanwhile, heard the shooting and put the two boys in the back of the house so they would be safe, then came outside and — along with about a half-dozen neighbors — tried to wrestle the gun away from Drommond, Gray said. Drommond tried to shoot himself, but the gun jammed, and the roommate and neighbors took it away, he said. The group then chased Drommond down the street, where he was nabbed by the first officer to arrive on the scene.

The children were then taken to a neighbor's apartment and were expected to stay the night with relatives, Gray said.

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