Man Who Shot Teen after Prank Acquitted

SIERRA VISTA, Ariz. - A Willcox man who shot and wounded a teenage girl after she and her friends banged on his windows in a late-night prank was acquitted of three felonies, but a jury couldn't reach a verdict on a fourth charge.

The Cochise County jury found Delbert "Cody" Evans not guilty of aggravated assault using a deadly weapon and endangering Kayla Shores, who was 14 when a bullet fired by Evans hit her in the back in February 2006. She has since recovered. Evans was also cleared of endangering another girl who was with a group of five teens on Evans' porch.

The jury was unable to reach a verdict on a charge of aggravated assault causing disfigurement. The verdicts came Friday after a three-day trial and eight hours of deliberations.

The teens had gone to Evans' rural home to get back at him for making a scary prank phone call, testimony showed. He had known Shores for years and they were friends.

Evans, 32, testified he had been threatened by a man over payment for a wood stove and thought he was shooting in self-defense at an assailant.

Prosecutor Vince Festa told jurors that Evans' actions were unjustified, saying Evans shot at ``fleeing shadowy figures'' that were not posing a threat.

Defense attorney Chuck Weninger said Evans would not have fired if he knew Shores was there, noting their long friendship.

A 13-person grand jury unanimously refused to indict Evans in 2006, infuriating some in the community, who accused Cochise County Attorney Ed Rheinheimer of bungling the case. A subsequent recall effort failed.

Rheinheimer eventually asked for a preliminary hearing, and a judge ordered Evans to stand trial on the four felony counts.

A hearing to decide if Evans will be retried on the remaining charge was set for Oct. 15.