Jail Time For Man Who Fired At Black Teen Who Came To His Door Asking For Directions

OAKLAND COUNTY, MI — A retired white firefighter who fired a shotgun at a Black high school freshman who knocked on his front door looking for directions has been sentenced to 4 to 10 years in prison.

A judge in Oakland County sentenced Jeffrey Zeigler to 2 to 10 years for one count of assault with intent to do great bodily harm and two years for one count of felony firearm. The sentences will be consecutive, meaning Zeigler will serve a total of at least four years.

On the morning of April 12, 53-year-old Zeigler was seen on home surveillance video shooting at Brennan Walker, 14, as the teen ran away from his house.

Walker later told police that he had missed his school bus that morning and got lost as he was walking through Rochester Hills. He then went to Zeigler's home to ask for directions to Rochester High School.

After he knocked on the door, “a lady came downstairs yelling at me," he told WDIV.

Zeigler's wife then called police and reported that “a Black male was trying to break into her house.”

Ziegler, a retired Detroit firefighter, then grabbed his shotgun and chased Walker, raising the gun to take a shot as Walker fled.

Walker was thankfully uninjured in the attack, but his mother, Lisa Wright, said he’ll be in therapy indefinitely.

The teen's mom told the judge that she believed that Zeigler was only remorseful because of the media attention.

Addressing Wright, Zeigler said, "I have full remorse and regret and I wish I could change something, but we can’t go back in time.”

Ziegler has claimed in the past that he believed that Walker was trying to rob him and that the shotgun accidentally fired when he tripped.

But police believe that the surveillance video clearly shows that Ziegler aimed the gun at Walker.

Read more: NBC News