A 31-year-old US woman has been charged with murdering her father after her parents tried to kick her out of their multi-million dollar home in South Carolina.
A 31-year-old US woman has been charged with murdering her father after her parents tried to kick her out of their multi-million dollar home in South Carolina.
Brittany Simpson allegedly shot dead her movie producer father Robert as the rest of the family slept upstairs - then hid her gunand clothing outside, saying an intruder had committed the crime.
Her family has even claimed she initially blamed her mother for not locking the doors as her father was dying.
The woman's parents had reportedly tried to evict her from their home in the exclusive Charleston suburb of Mount Pleasant, according to court documents.
The Simpson family in happier times. Robert Simpson (far right) was reportedly killed by his 31-year-old daughter, Brittany (not pictured). Picture: Facebook
Local newspaper the Post and Courier reported that Simpson first raised the prospect of an intruder during her sister's emergency call, saying a man "came in the back door".
In the call, Simpson's younger sister, Brooke, said, "I woke up, and I heard a gunshot, and my dad is screaming. There's blood everywhere. I think he's been shot."
In the background, Simpson reportedly could be overheard telling her sister and her mother that someone had broken in, saying she had been at the gym and ran in behind someone entering the family's back door.
Chelsea Simpson and another sister accused Brittany Simpson of the murder of their father. Picture: Facebook
Robert Simpson, who moved to the US from the UK in 1975, was still alive when paramedics arrived.
He had suffered a gunshot wound to the chest, but died as paramedics attempted to save him.
Chelsea Simpson, another sister, later arrived and accused her sister of the murder, telling police officers that her sister is "unstable".
According to affidavits in Simpson's arrest, police said that a gun had been kept in a bedroom that she used as storage, but that it was missing.
Police divers later found the gun along with a green bag stuffed with a pink T-shirt and shorts. A weight anchored the evidence to the bed of the creek, reported the Post and Courier.
Robert Simpson with his wife, Susan. Picture: Facebook
These clothes matched those that Simpson had been seen wearing earlier that morning in a surveillance video, and court documents concluded that: "Brittany Simpson did kill her father."
Police said that Simpson later confessed to the crime, and has been charged with murder and possession of a firearm in a violent crime.
At a bond hearing, Simpson appeared on a television screen as her family looked on when a police detective called her a "danger to the community".
According to court papers, there were problems within the family. Brittany Simpson was said to be was living in her family's home without paying rent. Her mother and father sought to evict her, reported the Post and Courier.
Brittany Simpson initially blamed an intruder in the shooting death of her father. Picture: WCIV
One of Simpson's friends reportedly came to court with a message from her mother, saying: "She's extremely upset and sick over this entire situation. I really know that your [mother] loves you."
Her family reportedly begged her to tell the truth during a court hearing, with a family member telling her: "Honesty will set you free."
