Cole County man accused of shooting gun at three youth in yard on New Year’s Eve

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Cole County man was arrested early Monday after he was accused of shooting a gun at three youth that were in his yard late Sunday.

Mark A. Turner, 49, of Jefferson City, was charged with unlawful use of a weapon and three counts second-degree endangering the welfare of a child. He is being held at the Cole County Jail on a $10,000 bond. A hearing was held on Tuesday and a preliminary hearing is set for 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 20 at the Cole County Circuit Court. Initially, no bond was set, but bond was amended to $10,000 at Tuesday’s bond review hearing, according to court records.

According to the probable cause statement, Cole County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a call in the 900 block of Scott Station Road at 11:40 p.m. Sunday. Three youth had told the deputy that they were walking through a yard to look at fireworks, the statement says. The juveniles claimed a man yelled at them to leave his property and then shot a gun three times, the statement says. The youth then ran back home and called police.

Turner allegedly told deputies that he was alerted by an exterior motion alarm on his cameras. He saw three people in his backyard at the edge of his property, the statement says. He then allegedly said he yelled at them to leave and shot into the ground three times.

The deputy asked for the location of the gun and Turner told him he wanted a lawyer, the statement says.

The deputy then found a handwritten sign made of cardboard that read, “I know who you are, I know where you live, I have you on video, you will be shot and killed, I will go after your family as well,” according to court documents.

Turner was arrested at 12:40 a.m., the statement says.