Man who shot at black teenager asking for directions to school convicted for assault

Jeffrey Ziegler claims he tripped and fired accidentally

The man said that he had tripped, causing his gun to fire (Screenshot)

A Michigan man has been found guilty of assault after firing his gun at a black teenager who stopped by his home to ask for directions to school.

The incident was caught on the man’s home security camera, and shows the teenager approach the home and knock on the door. Several moments later, the teen runs away from the house and the man emerges with a gun.

He then shoots at the young man running away from his home.

The man, Jeffrey Ziegler, was convicted of assault with attempt to murder and possession of a firearm the commission of a felony on Friday.

In his arraignment, Ziegler said that there was “a lot more to this story than what is being told”. He said that he was concerned that the teenager, 14-year-old Brennan Walker, was trying to rob his home. He also claimed that he only fired because he tripped.

Brennan told local media that he had stopped by to ask for directions to his high school after missing the bus, and that a woman had appeared when he knocked on the door yelling at him.

“A lady came downstairs yelling at me,” Mr Walker told local media. “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,” he said.

Ziegler’s claim that he shot his firearm as a result of tripping was contradicted by local police, who said that the footage from the security camera showed clearly that he had aimed at the teenager as he ran away from the home.