Father Sues Florida DCF After Python Kills Daughter

The father of a 2-year-old Sumter County girl who was killed by a python is suing the state Department of Children and Families for wrongful death.

Shaiunna Hare died July 1, 2009, when she was asphyxiated by a pet python kept in an Oxford home. The girl's mother, Jaren Hare, 21, and her boyfriend, Charles "Jason'' Darnell, 34, were convicted of third-degree murder, manslaughter and child neglect and sentenced to 12 years in prison.

Joseph Gilkerson, Shaiunna's father, believes the DCF should have removed the girl from her home for safety reasons. In the circuit court suit filed Dec. 29, Gilkerson alleges that the DCF received allegations two months before Shaiunna's death that the couple were not properly caring for her, and that an investigator saw the 8 1/2-foot Burmese python in the home.

The Department of Children and Families "owed a duty to Shaiunna Hare to act reasonably to protect her from hazards in her residential environment,'' the suit says.

According to the lawsuit, Gilkerson made his claims to the DCF in March 2011, and the agency denied the claims in writing Dec. 1.

Carrie Hoeppner, Central Florida communications director for the DCF, said on Thursday that the department's legal staff declined to comment because they had not yet received a copy of the lawsuit.

Gilkerson is seeking in excess of $15,000 for mental anguish. His attorney, J. Scott Gunn, was not available for comment Thursday.

The DCF investigated the couple and the residence from May 1, 2009, through June 12, 2009, the lawsuit alleges, and found there was "moderate risk'' of "environmental hazards'' to Shaiunna. The suit claims that the girl was at risk of exposure to marijuana use by the couple, and that Darnell's "erratic behavior'' also posed a threat.

During the couple's trial, detectives testified that the couple did not have the proper permits to keep the Burmese python. Gilkerson's suit says the DCF had a responsibility to investigate whether the couple had licenses, and report the presence of the snake to authorities so they could determine whether the snake was safely penned.

In court in July 2011, a snake farmer testified that the snake was malnourished and weighed only 15 pounds, and a medical examiner said the snake basically tried to ingest the child. Prosecutors said the snake's aquarium had only a quilt for a lid.

As Shaiunna slept on July 1, 2009, the python escaped from its aquarium, slithered into her crib, bit her multiple times on the arms and face, and then wrapped itself around the child, asphyxiating her.

The couple said the python, called Gypsy, was a tame family pet, and called the death a terrible accident.