Jury Convicts Retired Detroit Firefighter For Shooting at Lost Black Teen

A jury in Michigan has convicted a man who fired a shotgun at a 14-year-old teenager who knocked on his door to ask for directions last April. 

Prosecutors say when Brennan Walker missed his bus to school one morning, he decided to try and walk to his high school. But, at one point, Walker got lost, and he decided to stop by the Rochester Hills home of Jeffrey Ziegler, 53, to ask for directions. But, instead of giving the teenager directions, Ziegler fired a shotgun at the teen as he was running away, barely escaping injury. 

Ziegler was found guilty by the jury Friday afternoon with attempt to murder and possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony. 

Jurors in Detroit were shown home security footage of the incident recorded by Zeigler. 

"I knocked on the door, stepped back, knocked, stepped back, and then a lady came downstairs yelling at me," Walker told NBC News in April. "She asked me, 'Why are you trying to break into my house?' and I told her I was just looking for directions to Rochester High."

That's when Zeigler's wife called police, reporting a "black male was trying to break into her house and her husband chased after him into the yard."

Zeigler charged at Brennan with his shotgun firing at the boy as he ran away. 

Fortunately, Walker was not injured in the incident.

Earlier this year, Zeigler told the news media that he was innocent of all charges and that there was "a lot more to this story that what is being told."

The retired firefighter said he believed he was being robbed at the time and that the shotgun accidentally went off after he tripped. However, home security footage of the incident clearly showed Zeigler was aiming at Walker when he fired. 

The judge revoked Zeigler's bond and remanded him into custody after the jury found him guilty. 

Photo: 


Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content