A former Biden administration staffer faces an involuntary manslaughter charge for reportedly accidentally killing his girlfriend earlier this week while she was showering at their Bay Area apartment.
Nation Wood, 25, who worked with the Biden administration’s White House Secret Service team, was “dry-firing” his gun at their apartment on Tuesday when, not realizing it was loaded, he fired a shot through the wall and into Samantha Emge, his 22-year-old girlfriend.
“The victim, later identified as Emge, a San Francisco resident and 2025 graduate of San Francisco State University, was transported to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead,” according to The San Francisco Standard.
Wood at one point famously posed with then-Vice President Kamala Harris for a photo:
BREAKING: Former Biden WH staffer Nation Wood arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter for allegedly shooting and kiIIing his girlfriend pic.twitter.com/dvBwgkkRQo
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) March 27, 2026
The authorities appear to be treating this incident as an accident, as evidenced by charging documents filed by the San Francisco district attorney’s office that accuse Wood of killing Emge “without malice.”
“This is a very fresh investigation,” District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said in a statement. “While I understand some facts have come out, we are just beginning to determine everything that took place in that apartment that night.”
On LinkedIn, the employment social media app, Wood lists himself as an “independent pre-event site security advisor” who first started working with the Biden administration in 2023 and then continued through the second Trump administration until July of last year.
Emge’s LinkedIn, meanwhile, identified her as a design assistant at Chantal Lamberto Interior Design in Presidio Heights.
“As a recent Interior Design graduate, I am eager to put my skills and knowledge into professional practice,” her LinkedIn profile read. “I have a strong passion for creating and designing spaces that enhance the way people live.”
“The knowledge I have acquired during my time at San Francisco State has allowed me to gain the confidence to properly design while incorporating safety standards, material knowledge, efficient space planning, attention to detail, with an overall focus on the client’s needs and well-being,” her bio read.
Former Biden WH employee Nation Wood has been charged with involuntary manslaughter in the death of his girlfriend.
Samantha Emge was in the shower when she was shot dead. Wood claims he was “dry-firing” his gun and didn’t realize it was loaded.
Follow: @AFpost pic.twitter.com/zpdpze7PuF
— AF Post (@AFpost) March 28, 2026
Wood was formally charged and booked on Friday. He remains in jail on a $300,000 bond.
Wood has reportedly been assigned a public defender, Doug Welch, who argued on Friday that he wasn’t a flight risk.
“It does seem like a horrific accident and I think that Mr. Wood will do everything he can to do right,” Welch said in court, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. “There is no indication that he will go anywhere. He doesn’t have a record. He’s not going to disobey any court order.”
Welch added that Wood has the backing of his father, his father’s partner, and two of his uncles, all of whom attended his hearing on Friday.
Critics, meanwhile, have raised doubts about Wood’s story, especially considering he’s supposed to be a security guy who’s good with guns.
“Handling a weapon carelessly like that is unacceptable,” one critic opined. “How are you ‘dry-firing’ your gun while pointing at the bathroom where your girlfriend is at? The story ain’t adding up.”
See more concerns outlined below:
Even if dry firing you wouldn’t be pointing it at someone, he’s full of shit
— Sarah Adams (@sarahadams) March 28, 2026
This was no accident. He just happened to be pointing it towards the shower? Bullshit.
— Fist Punch X (@FistPunchX) March 28, 2026
I dry fire often. Never had an accident or even an incident where I injure/maim my husband.
This is bullshit. 😒— Queso (nacho cheese edition) (@uwu_hyna) March 28, 2026
He worked in security at the White House, yet he ended up shooting his girlfriend in the shower, later claiming he didn’t realize the gun was loaded while dry-firing😔
— Everything honey (@honeyscave) March 28, 2026
Idiots should not have guns. Murderers should not have guns. Maybe check the chamber if you’re gonna pull the trigger. Maybe dont point it at your girlfriend if you’re gonna pull the trigger. Charges warranted.
— CorePuncher (@Core_Puncher) March 28, 2026
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V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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