A 68-year-old man is facing a felony voluntary manslaughter charge after allegedly shooting and killing a homeless man who was sleeping on a sidewalk he was running on.
How the incident happened
Craig Sumner Elliott was jogging on a Garden Grove, California, path with his two dogs and a pushcart on Sept. 28, when he encountered Antonio Garcia Avalos, 40, sleeping on the path, according to a release shared by the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
Elliott allegedly nudged Avalos with the pushcart. And after waking up, Avalos began yelling at Elliott, who then started recording the interaction, according to the DA.
Prosecutors claimed that the video taken by Elliott captures Avalos throwing a shoe at him before showing Elliott shooting Avalos three times with a gun he retrieved from the pushcart.
The arrest
Elliott was arrested by the Garden Grove Police Department on Nov. 17 in connection with the shooting, the release said.
In addition to the felony voluntary manslaughter charge, Elliott is also facing one felony enhancement of personal use of a firearm.
His potential number of years
Per the DA, if convicted on both charges, he faces up to 21 years in prison.
‘This is a tragic set of circumstances that unfolded in the worst possible way over a minor inconvenience of a blocked sidewalk, and a man is dead as a result,’ Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said in the statement.
‘This case is a stark reminder that taking the law into your own hands is never the answer and that there are consequences for your actions.’
According to the DA, Elliott has been released from custody after posting bail. He is slated to be arraigned on Dec. 15.
