RIDGELY, Md. - A Caroline County family is seeking justice after the family dog was shot and killed in an apparent accident.
On Sept. 3, Lynn Zepp and her family were hosting a birthday party for their 5-year-old. According Maryland State Police, Jordan Glensor was target shooting from his grandmother's residence. As he was shooting, the bullets ricocheted off the ground and flew into the nearby neighborhood. In that neighborhood was Zepp's home.
Zepp said her home is in the direct line of where the target shooting was. "I remember I was still sitting here on the picnic table and I said, 'does that sound like fireworks' because there were so many booms all at once. It was like 4:20 in the afternoon".
There is also a wooded area behind Zepp's home where the bullets were coming from. "We just started panicking because you could hear them whizzing and whistling past our heads. They were so close. We just all tried to grab the kids," says Zepp.
The party consisted of five children, five adults, and one dog. And, Zepp who is 9 months pregnant. Fortunately, none of the guests or family members were hurt. But, only a few feet away from everyone was Zepp's family dog, McGraw. The dog was struck by a bullet and later died.
Zepp's brother, Matthew Rinehimer, was at the party. He says his 3-year-old was no more than five feet from the dog. "I drive by my sisters house everyday taking my 3-year-old to day care. She says, 'daddy that's where that man shot that dog. He died.' It brings tears in my eyes because she has no idea how lucky we were that it wasn't one of us," says Rinehimer.
Charges against Glensor were filed Wednesday. There are 10 counts of reckless endangerment.
Rinehimer says he went to a County Commissioner meeting to bring light of this incident, before charges were filed. Rinehimer says, "We are not looking to drag anybody through the mud. We just want the right thing done because something bad happened and that's punishable."
Lynn Zepp's husband, Justin Zepp, says he will meet with the state's attorney office, Friday, to discuss the charges and steps going forward with the case.