A $300,000 bond has been set for a Stone County man accused of shooting a 13-year-old over the weekend.
Stone County Sheriff Brandon Long made the announcement on the department’s Facebook page, noting prosecutors are moving forward with felony charges against Steven Alan Gill (pictured), 60, of Luber.
Long said Gill will be charged with one count of second-degree attempted murder, one count of aggravated assault, and an enhancement charge of using a firearm during a felonious act, making the attempted murder charge a Class A felony. A person convicted of second-degree attempted murder in Arkansas can be sentenced to up to 30 years in prison and fined up to $15,000.
The sheriff said detectives met with prosecutors on Tuesday, who based the charges on the collective evidence.
Long said that around 5 p.m. on Aug. 31, deputies responded to a report of a shooting in the Luber area of Stone County. Upon arrival, deputies learned that the teenager had been shot in the neck with a .22-caliber rifle. The victim received care at the scene before being airlifted to Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock. Gill was detained shortly after the shooting for questioning.
According to Mountain Home radio station KTLO, Gill told investigators during his initial interview that he had been “firing toward a couple of dogs near his private pond.”
However, the sheriff said as the investigation continued into the night and early morning hours, “detectives found that the evidence collected conflicted with Gill’s statements, leading to his arrest.”
Little Rock television station KARK interviewed the cousin of the victim, Justin Dycus, 18, who said he and his cousin were attempting to fish at a pond on land owned by the Gill family. Dycus said another family member had given them permission to fish there.
In the KARK report, Dycus said it was his cousin who was hit by one of the bullets in his left shoulder. The victim was airlifted to Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock and is recovering with non-life-threatening injuries.
Dycus added that the bullets barely missed him, and that the bullet that injured his cousin could have paralyzed or killed him if it had struck an inch closer to vital areas.
Click here for the KARK report.
Image: Stone County Sheriff’s Office
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