Couple requests to adopt 14-year-old girl accused of shooting at deputies during dramatic standoff, says the foster system failed her

A Florida couple is requesting to adopt a 14-year-old girl who is accused of shooting at deputies during an early June, 2021 standoff, saying the state's foster system failed the girl.

What's a brief history here?

Nicole Jackson, 14, and 12-year-old Travis O'Brien, are accused of breaking out of their foster group home and embarking on a crime spree which included breaking and entering and the attempted murder of a law enforcement official.

As TheBlaze previously reported, Jackson is being charged as an adult following the incident in which she and O'Brien reportedly shot at Volusia County Sheriff's deputies.

She faces felony charges that include attempted murder of a police officer.

What's happening now?

According to a report from WESH-TV, couple Shauna and Dan Willis reached out to the teen following her arrest, and have been communicating with her while she's been in jail.

“We just have good intentions in mind for her," Shauna told the station. "So, we pray for her every day, and if we can give her a family, we’d be willing to do that."

Dan said that she'd hate to see the girl go back into the foster system if acquitted on the charges.

“I assume she would go back in the foster system. We would prefer that if adopting her would keep her out of that system, then we would do that,” Dan Willis said.

According to the station, a public defender is representing Jackson in the case, which is set for a February case management hearing.

O'Brien — who is being charged as a minor — remains in juvenile detention.

What else?

When speaking about the June incident, Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood said that the two escaped their group home and broke into an unoccupied home where they discovered a cache of weaponry.

When police tracked Jackson and O'Brien to the home, they were faced with guns and death threats.

"Their conversation was they were going to kill my sergeant. They were coming out to kill cops. They were coming out to kill deputies, that's the conversation," Chitwood said at the time.

Officers were able to negotiate the minors' surrender after two hours, but not before the two reportedly destroyed much of the homeowner's property while firing on the law enforcement officials.

"This went on for hours," Chitwood recalled. "This wasn't a split-second, we exchange gunfire. We were out here from 7:30 to 9 o'clock until we returned fire."

Luckily, no deputies were killed during the standoff.

Deputies' bullets struck Jackson in the abdomen and arm, but the boy remained uninjured.

She was transported to a nearby hospital for treatment following the siege.

The teen ultimately recovered from her injuries and was released into police custody.

"My deputies showed more restraint than I'm showing right now because I'm furious that we could be burying somebody tonight," Chitwood said. "They took multiple, multiple rounds ... And I know for a fact one banana clip was empty from the AK-47. I know from the radio transmissions that a 12-year-old opened fire on us. I know that the 14-year-old opened fire on us with a shotgun, and then walked out and threatened one of my sergeants and told him she was going to kill him. And we didn't return fire. But after she came out of the garage, hey. There was nothing left that we could do. We had to do what we had to do."

Anything else to know?

Jackson in September penned an apology letter for her actions.

A portion of the letter read, "I was sacred for life. I did not known what I was thinking! Oh God, I gotten myself into a lot! Well I hope you forgive me and what I did, if you don't I understand why you can't forgive a person that quick. But I wish the best for you!"