DICKINSON – A Galveston County jury handed a 64-year-old man a 40-year prison sentence for shooting his son and a 20-year sentence for shooting his daughter-in-law at their Dickinson home just before Christmas in 2021.
The trial, which started on Monday and lasted all week, found Chad Anthony Dick guilty of more serious charges than originally brought.
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The shooting
Dickinson Police and Galveston County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to a distress call from a home on December 5, 2021. By the time they showed up, they found Chad Dick being held by at gunpoint by neighbors. Among the neighbors was a retired fire department chief who stepped in to help the victims, George Dick and Hilary Dick, into an ambulance.
George, 33, had a critical gunshot wound to the abdomen, and Hilary, also 33, got shot in the arm, which caused severe damage, leaving her without the use of her right arm and dealing with lifelong health problems.
The couple’s two young kids were at home when it all happened.
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Upgraded charges and trial
Chad Dick was initially charged with two counts of second-degree aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. But during the trial, those charges got bumped up to first-degree aggravated assault with a deadly weapon causing serious bodily injury to a family member.
Chief Assistant District Attorney Casey Kirst played nearly four hours of taped statements from Dick, where he admitted to being drunk and barely remembering what happened.
While in custody, he told police he shot his son because he’d yelled at him. Even though Dick claimed he acted in self-defense, he couldn’t really explain what the threat was.
The prosecution, represented by Kirst and Assistant District Attorney Nathan Farmer, brought in testimonies from the victims and showed evidence of Dick’s past conviction for burglary, which cast doubt on his self-defense claims.
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Hilary Dick’s testimony detailed the lifelong impact of her injuries, while George Dick talked about his long recovery, which included losing a kidney, a foot of his intestines, and part of his colon due to the gunshot wound and infections afterward.
Letters from jail
During the sentencing phase, the prosecution also presented letters Chad Dick sent from jail.
In these letters, he begged for money. Kirst argued that these letters showed a complete lack of remorse and a clear inability to change.
Chad Dick will be eligible for parole after serving half of his 40-year sentence.
