Eagan woman shot dad, charges say

A 23-year-old Eagan woman arrested last Feb. 22 in the shooting of her father in his Woodbury home during an apparent dispute over custody of her son has been charged with three felonies.

Amber A. Rabideau is charged in Washington County District Court with first-, second- and third-degree assault.

The 3 1/2-month interval between her arrest and the charges being filed stemmed from conflicting versions of her account of what happened that morning and that of the only other witness, her father, James J. Rabideau, 44. Rabideau, wounded in the abdomen and right hip, had part of his bowels removed and still has a bullet lodged in his back, police say.

According to the complaint, Woodbury police responded to a report of gunshots at 9:58 a.m. in the 2200 block of Kings Drive. Officers found James lying in the kitchen with two .22-caliber bullet wounds.

The complaint said that James and his wife, Tina Rabideau, had agreed to care for Amber's son, then 3, rather than having the child placed for adoption. The couple had filed for legal custody last fall, but Amber has been fighting the petition.

A court official had allowed Amber to take the boy for an overnight visit, the complaint said, but "due to some information they received," the couple wouldn't allow Amber to take the child overnight. That led to the argument, James told investigators.

According to his version, he left a bedroom where he was arguing with his daughter to get a drink of water, the complaint said. When he returned, Amber was holding a pistol that he had kept in a closet. He hit Amber as he tried to wrestle the gun away, the complaint said, and "the next thing he remembered was a loud noise which he thought he heard twice."

According to Amber's version, her father grabbed her and pushed her to the ground, the complaint said, and "the next thing she remembered was something 'prickly' being placed in her hand and hearing the gun go off." She said she believed her father shot himself in an effort to take her child from her.

Amber admitted first calling her lawyer after Rabideau was shot, and did not offer help or call 911, the complaint said.

She is scheduled to appear in court on July 15.

Jim Anderson • 612-673-7199