Man sentenced to 2 years for firing gun, injuring man who attempted to steal his pickup
Jun. 16—A rural Glenville man was sentenced to two years of supervised probation earlier this week for firing a rifle and injuring a man who attempted to steal his pickup last September near Gordonsville.
James Joseph Vinton in March pleaded guilty to intentional discharge of a firearm that endangers the safety of another, a felony. If he successfully completes his probation, his conviction will be reduced to a misdemeanor.
He will also not be able to use or possess firearms, ammunition or explosives and cannot register to vote or vote until discharged from probation.
Court documents stated deputies were dispatched Sept. 26 to 11859 800th Ave. in Freeborn County after receiving a call from a woman that someone had stolen a blue Chevy pickup and that her husband had shot a gun into the air.
When a deputy arrived, the pickup was in the ditch and hung up on a fence, and other men were standing in the road. The person who had attempted to take the truck was sitting on the ground near the driver's side of the vehicle and said he couldn't stand or move the right side of his body. He had two puncture wounds to the top of his back and was ultimately taken to St. Marys Hospital in Rochester, where he was expected to make a full recovery.
Vinton told authorities he fired one shot over the pickup and said he figured it was kids trying to take the truck and was hoping to scare them. He fired a second shot a little while later, stating he shot at the rear driver's tire to get the vehicle to stop.
Vinton initially faced a second charge of felony second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon, but that charge was dismissed.
The man who was injured, Andre Tyree Williams, of Harcourt, Iowa, faces charges of felony theft and criminal damage to property and is slated for a pre-trial July 15 and a jury trial Aug. 1.
