Family of killed Pueblo West teen wants shooter arrested
A Pueblo West family wants to know why the man who killed Diana Daughtry, 18, hasn’t been arrested.
Daughtry was shot on Thanksgiving night at a home on the 25000 block of Highway 50 East. The shooter was later identified as Aaron McDaniel, 40. McDaniel and Daughtry dated and lived in the home together.
McDaniel called 911 around 9:20 p.m. on Nov. 27 and told the dispatcher he shot Daughtry while she was attacking him with a weapon. Daughtry was taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries and died hours later. McDaniel was treated at the scene for the injuries he said he sustained from Daughtry.
Daughtry’s family spoke exclusively with KRDO NewsChannel 13. Heidi Nolen said she saw her daughter hours before she was shot.
“My last memories of my daughter are laughing, walking out the front door saying that she’d be back the next day for school,” Heidi Nolen, 40, said. “My daughter couldn’t hurt anybody.”
Daughtry’s older sister, Angie Nolen, 22, has questions about where McDaniel shot her sister. “Why is the first bullet in between her eyes? Anywhere. Her feet. Her arms. Even if he couldn’t get it, it didn’t have to be in the middle of her head.”
KRDO NewsChannel 13 went to McDaniel’s home to see if he wanted to comment but no one answered (a note requesting an interview was also left at his home).
Daughtry’s mother said McDaniel has been a family friend for decades, and that’s why she trusted him with her daughter. After the shooting, McDaniel told Pueblo County deputies that Daughtry was his ex-girlfriend, but Heidi Nolen said she didn’t know the two had broken up.
“He was family. He was Army trained. He was a [prison] guard,” Heidi Nolen said. “If I was going to trust my daughter’s life with someone, it would have been him. It was him.”
Heidi and Angie Nolen said they’re concerned about the lack of updates they’ve received from the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office on the status of the investigation.
“Something has to be wrong with this investigation,” said Angie Nolen. “This can’t be how it’s supposed to go. Especially considering her injuries and his training. This cannot be right.”
Daughtry’s mother and daughter want justice for Diana Daughtry. Her loved ones describe her as a shy, blue-eyed teen with a big heart for animals who dreamed of being an entomologist.
“My little girl’s in a box. And he’s walking around,” Heidi Nolen said.
District Attorney Jeff Chostner, of the Tenth Judicial District, said the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the shooting and expects the case to be transferred to his office for review sometime within the upcoming week.
Investigators have not said what weapon Daughtry is accused of using against McDaniel.
Pueblo County Coroner James Kramer said Daughtry died from a single gunshot wound to the head
