US man doing target practice with gun he got as Christmas gift arrested for fatally shooting woman
Adams had bought a Glock 45 pistol as a Christmas gift for himself. He was shooting at a Red Bull can for some practice rounds in his backyard when one of the bullets went astray.
Adams had bought a Glock 45 pistol as a Christmas gift for himself. (Photo: Stephens County Sheriff’s Office)
Authorities in the US state of Oklahoma have arrested a man over the fatal shooting incident on Christmas Day, which left a woman dead.
The victim, identified as Sandra Phelps, a resident of Stephens County, was sitting under a covered front porch at a home in Comanche, on Thursday afternoon when she was struck by a single bullet.
Victim was holding a baby
The bullet struck Phelps in her right upper arm and then entered her chest cavity, ACB News, citing an affidavit, reported.
The elderly woman was also holding a baby in her left arm when she was struck by the bullet.
The family members told a responding deputy they had heard someone shooting five to seven rounds over several minutes north of the residence, according to the affidavit. The victim “commented that someone got a new gun for Christmas” and then shortly after “said ‘ouch’ and collapsed,” according to the affidavit.
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During the investigation, the cops searched the neighbourhood and found one home less than a mile away that lacked a suitable backstop for shooting, according to the affidavit.
Suspect doing target practice
The Stephens County Sheriff’s Office said the suspect, identified as Cody Wayne Adams, accidentally shot and killed the elderly woman.
According to the investigators, 33-year-old Adams had bought a Glock 45 pistol as a Christmas gift for himself. He was shooting at a Red Bull can for some practice rounds in his backyard when one of the bullets went astray and hit Phelps, a couple of roads over.
Investigators found “several spent bullet casings on the ground and on the deck” in Adams’ backyard, along with a Red Bull can south of the house. From the point where Adams said he was shooting toward the can, red and blue lights of emergency vehicles at the home where Phelps was shot “were visibly in line with the shooting angle,” the affidavit said.
When told that his shooting might have caused the woman’s death, Adams “became visibly upset and began to cry,” according to the affidavit. A deputy told him that “there was nothing behind his property to stop any bullets from traveling beyond his property and hurting someone.”
Adams has been charged with first-degree manslaughter in connection with the deadly shooting, and during his initial court appearance on Friday, Adams’ bond was set at $100,000, according to online court records.
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Adams had bought a Glock 45 pistol as a Christmas gift for himself. (Photo: Stephens County Sheriff’s Office) 
