Mr. T. had been arguing with his girlfriend at a local bar when they returned home at 3 in the morning. He continued arguing with her, and with the other roommates in the apartment. At one point, he grabbed a gun and accidently fired it into the wall. The bullet went through that wall and grazed the occupant in the next apartment.
He was ultimately charged with Aggravated Assault Dangerous (with a Gun) pursuant to Arizona Revised Statute ARS 13-1204; Felony Reckless Endangerment under Arizona Revised Statute ARS 13-1201; and Criminal Negligence under Arizona Revised Statute ARS 13-3107. All of these were alleged to be “dangerous crimes” which carried mandatory Prison time.
At Trial, we were able to show that the discharge was accidental, and not intentional. The Jury returned a verdict that this was not a dangerous crime, and he was acquitted of the “allegation of dangerousness”. He was originally facing a minimum of 5 years in Prison, but that now dropped to the possibility of probation. He was then given probation with 12 months of Jail time with work release.