California Family Sue Sheriff’s Office Who Hired Man That Murdered Three Relatives, Kidnapped 15-Year-Old

A California family is suing the Washington County Sheriff’s Office after a former Virginia state trooper catfished their teenage daughter and killed three members of their family by pretending he was a detective.

Austin Lee Edwards is alleged to have murdered grandparents Mark Winek and Sharie Winek and their 38-year-old daughter, Brooke Winek, on Nov. 25, 2022, after traveling to the family's home and kidnapping their 15-year-old daughter. 

The former Virginia state trooper pretended to be a 17-year-old boy online and gained access to the girl's family home leading to the murders. 

He later shot himself during a confrontation with police in the Mojave Desert.

Per the lawsuit, the Washington County Sheriff's Office failed to properly investigate Edwards before hiring him on Nov. 16, 2022. 

“Edwards never should have been hired by the Sheriff’s Department. He was barred by the courts from owning or possessing a gun because of his mental illness and because he was a clear danger to the community,” said lead attorney David Ring. “He used his position as a sheriff’s deputy and the gun they gave him to kill these innocent victims.”

“Our law enforcement agencies and their process for screening new hires must be held to the highest standards,” co-counsel Alison Saros added. “These individuals are meant to protect us, but the Sheriff’s Office failed to follow the proper processes. Sadly, the Winek family has suffered irreparable tragedy.”

It follows other legal notices stating that the family intends to sue Washington County federally, citing gross negligence in Edwards' hiring and claiming more than $100 million in damages.

Filed by the teen’s aunt, Mychelle Blandin, the lawsuit said Edwards was “unfit to be a sheriff's deputy, given his mental health background” when he was hired. It accuses Edwards of “threatening to kill his father: during a mental health crisis and cites evidence depicting that he was taken for a psychiatric evaluation and put into a treatment facility. 

Per Virginia law, such records prevent one from possessing a gun unless a court evaluates the situation.

The lawsuit referenced a 2016 court order prohibiting him from buying, possessing and transporting a firearm. It also said that Edwards never informed Virginia State Police about the ordeal nor was his right to buy or possess a firearm restored, despite this the Washington County Sheriff’s Office hired him as a deputy and provided him with a service firearm.

“’I am bringing this lawsuit because my family wants to know how Edwards was hired as a sheriff’s deputy and given a gun when the courts expressly ordered he could not possess a firearm,” Blandin said, according to Daily Mail.

“He used his position as a sheriff to gain access to my parents’ home, where he killed them and my sister. I want the Washington County Sheriff’s Office held accountable for giving a mentally unfit person a badge and a gun.”

The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that the state police, which was not named as a defendant in the lawsuit, has changed its employment processes as well as its background investigation policies and training since the lawsuit was filed.

The lawsuit seeks a jury trial and unspecified damages.