Hopkins man charged in girlfriend’s death claims he pulled trigger to test if gun was empty

A Hopkins man accused of shooting and killing his girlfriend over the weekend claims he shot the victim while clearing his gun, court documents show.

Krystofer Patrick Brooks, 20, is charged with one count each of second-degree murder and first-degree manslaughter in connection with the fatal shooting on Saturday on the 1300 block of Cambridge Street in Hopkins.

RELATED: Hopkins police investigating shooting that left woman dead

According to a criminal complaint, Brooks called 911 to report that he had shot his girlfriend of two years in the head. First responders found the victim shot in the eye, and she was pronounced dead at the scene.

Brooks told police the shooting happened while he followed his “normal routine” to make sure his gun was empty, pulling back the slide to check there wasn’t a round in the chamber and “pulling the trigger a few times” while aiming at the windows across the apartment, the complaint states. Brooks said he turned toward his girlfriend and pulled the trigger again “to be sure it was unloaded,” and the gun fired as she sat up in bed.

According to the complaint, Brooks said he loaded a magazine into the gun the night before the shooting because he had heard gunfire outside his apartment building. He said he had taken a THC edible that night and was unsure if he had removed the magazine from the gun before going to bed.

Brooks’ first court appearance is set for Wednesday afternoon. He remains in custody at the Hennepin County Jail on $500,000 bond.
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