--- description: A 14-year-old girl from Ohio is accused of fatally shooting her father in the head—and her mother is calling her a "hero" title: 14-Year-Old Girl Killed​ Dad to Protect Family From Abuse, Mom Says image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7597061dd36e0fb9/69889b06428a9e824bcd3576/police-line.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [motto](/tag/motto/) ## motto Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # 14-Year-Old Girl Killed​ Dad to Protect Family From Abuse, Mom Says by [Rosalie Chan](/author/rosalie-chan/) ## Rosalie Chan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 5, 2016 6:51 PM CUT  A blurred police car in the background behind yellow crime scene tape. A blurred police car in the background behind yellow crime scene tape.aijohn784—iStockphoto/Getty Images by [Rosalie Chan](/author/rosalie-chan/) ## Rosalie Chan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 5, 2016 6:51 PM CUT A 14-year-old girl from Ohio is accused of fatally shooting her father in the head—and her mother is calling her a “hero” for saving the family after years of physical abuse. Bresha Meadows has been charged with one count of murder for killing her father Jonathan Meadows, 41, on July 28 by shooting him with his own gun, [_People_ reports](http://www.people.com/article/ohio-girl-accused-kiling-abusive-dad-saving-mom "undefined"). “She is my hero,” Bresha’s mother Brandi Meadows [told Fox 8 in Cleveland](http://myfox8.com/2016/08/04/14-year-old-accused-of-killing-father-but-family-says-girl-is-hero-who-saved-them-all/ "undefined"). “I wasn’t strong enough to get out and she helped me. I am so sorry she had to go through this.” Prosecutor Stanley Elkins told Fox 8 that he believes this “was a justifiable case of self-defense.” Bresha Meadows is due in Trumbull County Family Court for a pre-trial hearing at the end of August, and she has entered a plea of “not true” to the charge against her. \[[_People_](http://www.people.com/article/ohio-girl-accused-kiling-abusive-dad-saving-mom "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4441279/ohio-girl-kill-father-mom-abuse/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4441279/ohio-girl-kill-father-mom-abuse/"},"headline":"14-Year-Old Girl Killed​ Dad to Protect Family From Abuse, Mom Says","datePublished":"2016-08-05T18:51:51.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T09:03:05.313Z","description":"\"She is my hero,\" her mom said","url":"https://time.com/4441279/ohio-girl-kill-father-mom-abuse/","keywords":["motto","Crime","tragedy","People","local"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7597061dd36e0fb9/69889b06428a9e824bcd3576/police-line.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Rosalie Chan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/rosalie-chan/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7597061dd36e0fb9/69889b06428a9e824bcd3576/police-line.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"A police crime scene tape close-up","caption":"A police crime scene tape close-up","creditText":"aijohn784—iStockphoto/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/motto/","name":"motto"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4441279/ohio-girl-kill-father-mom-abuse/","name":"14-Year-Old Girl Killed​ Dad to Protect Family From Abuse, Mom Says"}}]}] ```