WASHINGTON – Loudoun County sheriff’s officials say a homeowner fired a warning shot before fatally shooting a 16-year-old neighbor who drunkenly entered the wrong home by mistake.
Officials say it appears Caleb A. Gordley, of Sterling, Va., mistakenly entered through a rear, unlocked window. There is no evidence to indicate Gordley entered the home with any further criminal intent, sheriff’s officials say.
His family said he sneaked out of the house Saturday night and went drinking with friends. Walking home, he mistakenly entered a similar home two doors down from his own.
At around 2:30 Sunday morning, sheriff’s officials say the homeowner reportedly found Gordley in the stairwell and gave a verbal warning before firing a first shot. The teen continued up the stairs, and officials say Caleb was shot in the left rear shoulder after passing the homeowner in a hallway and walking toward a bedroom where others were located.
Gordley died at the scene.
The .40-caliber gun used in the shooting appears to have been legally owned, authorities say. Several shell casings and rounds were recovered by police.
The sheriff’s office also is investigating how Gordley obtained alcohol earlier in the evening.
A toxicology report is pending.
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