An Oklahoma man has been charged with first-degree manslaughter after a bullet he fired during target practice accidentally killed a woman.
According to Fox News, officers in Stephens County, Oklahoma, responded on Thursday (December 25) to a shooting where Sandra Phelps was fatally struck by a bullet while sitting on her front porch holding a child.
Emergency services were dispatched to Phelps' address at about 3.15pm on Christmas Day, the Stephens county sheriff’s office said in a statement.
"We later received a call stating an individual had just received a gun for Christmas and was target practicing in his backyard and that they believed it would be pointing in the direction of the scene," the sheriff’s office statement added.
According to an affidavit, Phelps, before the shooting, commented that "someone got a new gun for Christmas," and then shortly after said "ouch" and collapsed.
After canvassing nearby residences, officers discovered 33-year-old Cory Adams, who claimed he’d been shooting a new Glock. 45 caliber handgun that he purchased for himself for Christmas, aimed at a Red Bull can on the ground nearby.
Adams didn’t have any shielding to prevent bullets from traveling beyond his property. Officers also discovered spent shell casings and broken ceramic tile near the target that they determined caused the bullet’s trajectory to be altered and kill Phelps.
When informed by police that a bullet he fired caused someone’s death, Adams apologized to the police and "became visibly upset and began to cry," according to the affidavit.
Adams has been released on a $100,000 bond.
