The father of a bullied 14-year-old runaway who shot herself in front of a sheriff’s deputy recalled the harrowing moment he ran to the scene when he heard the gunshot and tried to save her life.
Jaylee Chillson shot herself during a party in Aurora late Saturday while the Cloud County Sheriff’s deputy tried to return her to her parents, who have said she suffered through years of emotional and physical abuse.
The tragic girl’s dad, Jeb, said he heard the nearby gunfire and ran to the scene.
“They told me not to go in there, but I said used to be an EMT, I can help,” he told the Daily Mail. “When I got closer, they told me that there was a girl shot, so I took off running.
“I see my daughter on the ground, being held up by one of the partygoers. As I come up to the deputy, he tells me that she pulled the gun out and shot herself as he was going over to her,” Chillson said.
“I told them that we needed to call for a helicopter and an ambulance. We’re putting pressure on her, and when the paramedic got there, they had already made up their minds about her,” he added to the outlet.
‘I started doing CPR on my daughter for about ten minutes. I told them that I wasn’t going to let my daughter die without trying.”
After performing CPR for several minutes, Chillson said he held the mortally wounded Jaylee in his arms.
It was unclear whom the gun belonged to and where the girl obtained it.
The Cloud County Sheriff’s Office referred The Post to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, which is assisting in the investigation, but the agency has not responded to a message.
Meanwhile, the head of the Clay County school district called Jaylee’s death a “tragic loss” – but did not deny the family’s allegations that the young teen had been mercilessly bullied for years.
“Jaylee was a student in our school district from August 2014 -March 2023, and I was deeply saddened when I heard about her death,” Superintendent Brett Nelson told the Daily Mail in a statement.
“Over the past week, our school district has been focused on supporting the people most affected by this tragic loss. This includes offering and providing support to Jaylee’s family, as well as working closely with our students’ families and district employees during this difficult time,” he said.
“Our counseling team is available to students in every school, and our staff team knows how to connect students with highly trained, caring professionals who can help them get through the challenges of school and life in safe and healthy ways,” Nelson continued.
He added that school officials were “reminding our students to tell a trusted adult if they are struggling or know someone who might need help.”
The schoolgirl’s death followed a period of her being treated “absolutely awful,” her mother, Stacie, first wrote on Facebook — condemning “those that hurt my baby” and played “a part in crushing her.”
“One girl was threatening to kill my daughter,” Jeb previously told The Messenger of abuse that happened at school and continued online after she was pulled out of classes.
“My daughter would come in covered in bruises and stuff like that,” he said, describing how one girl dumped rubber cement in his daughter’s hair as other students watched, while another encouraged her to cut herself.
One boy even grabbed Jaylee’s “crotch in a sexual manner against her will,” Jeb told the outlet.
The couple, who also have four sons, said they alerted school officials about their daughter’s torment but that nothing was done, adding that she was “just as miserable” in eighth grade.
They eventually placed Jaylee in another school in the district but she ended up getting physically assaulted there, Jeb said, adding that they pulled her out of that school as well and homeschooled her.
In a heartbreaking Facebook post, Stacie wrote that “the world lost one of its brightest lights. This girl has the biggest heart of anyone I know and has since she was just a little girl.”
If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts or are experiencing a mental health crisis and live in New York City, you can call 1-888-NYC-WELL for free and confidential crisis counseling. If you live outside the five boroughs, you can dial the 24/7 National Suicide Prevention hotline at 988 or go to SuicidePreventionLifeline.org.
