A man who fired a gun near a school and park in the Rose Village neighborhood was sentenced Thursday to 200 days in jail.
Anthony Schierer, 29, of Vancouver pleaded guilty in Clark County Superior Court to second-degree malicious mischief, second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, aiming or discharging a firearm, reckless endangerment and tampering with physical evidence.
He initially faced assault charges because responding police officers believed shots were fired toward them. However, the ensuing investigation found that was not the case.
Schierer entered an “in re barr” plea to the malicious mischief charge, which allows a defendant to plead guilty to a lesser related charge he didn’t commit in order to avoid conviction for a greater offense.
According to a probable cause affidavit, Schierer’s cousin, Joseph A. Cunningham of Boise, Idaho, was in town visiting him at his home, 1715 E. 29th St., March 10 and brought along his Glock 9mm handgun. The men, who were heavily intoxicated, began shooting the gun into the air in the middle of the street.
At about 2:15 a.m., a neighbor reported seeing the men walk to a park that is part of Washington Elementary School and watched as they took turns with the gun, pointing it toward the school and firing off rounds, the affidavit states.
Two Vancouver police officers responded and said that as they got out of their patrol vehicle, shots were fired in their direction, court records show.
The shooters fled, but witnesses saw one run to Schierer’s residence and notified police. A SWAT team responded and surrounded the house, leading to a standoff that lasted two to three hours before the man surrendered, police said. The other man was arrested outside of the house, according to police.
In an interview, Cunningham admitted that he and Schierer had been drinking vodka all day and were “shooting the gun for fun,” court documents state. He said he and Schierer fired the shots into the air and at a trash can but denied shooting any rounds in the direction of any person or vehicle, the affidavit said.
Police said they found the gun in the gutter of Schierer’s house. The men allegedly threw the pistol’s magazine into some grass, and it was never located, court records said. Ammunition casings were found in the street and near the playground, and bullet holes were found in a street sign, a trash can and a light pole, court documents state.
Deputy Prosecutor Aaron Bartlett said Thursday that a nearby day care was struck by one of the bullets.
Judge Derek Vanderwood agreed to follow the attorneys’ previously agreed-upon sentencing recommendation. Schierer also was sentenced to 364 days, to be suspended for two years, and he was given credit for 36 days in custody. He also must register as a firearms offender.
Cunningham’s case is still pending.
