Dr. Janette Nesheiwat, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Surgeon General, has risen to prominence as a leading advocate for preventive medicine and public health. However, a tragic incident from her youth has resurfaced, casting a shadow over her nomination.
At 13, Nesheiwat was involved in an accidental shooting that resulted in the death of her father, Ziad “Ben” Nesheiwat, in their Orlando home. The 1990 incident, ruled a “freak accident” by authorities, has been described in police reports and revisited in media coverage.
According to the report, young Nesheiwat was searching for scissors in her father’s bedroom when she accidentally tipped over a fishing tackle box. The movement caused a loaded .38-caliber handgun to discharge. The bullet struck her father in the head while he was sleeping.
“I was in Father’s bedroom at about 7:15 a.m. getting some scissors,” Nesheiwat recounted to police at the time. “I opened the fishing tackle box, and the whole thing tipped over.”
She later added that she saw blood on her father’s ear and attempted to provide aid by placing ice on his head before calling 911.
Police arriving at the scene found Ziad Nesheiwat lying on the bed, his arms