A Rose Township man has admitted to shooting his friend — believed to be an accident — while the friend was urinating outdoors.
At a hearing April 4 before Oakland County Circuit Judge Phyllis McMillen, Thomas Wolford, 32, pleaded guilty to the three crimes he was charged with: careless discharge of a firearm causing injury or death, possession of a firearm while under the influence of liquor or a controlled substance — both misdemeanors — and carrying a concealed weapon, a felony punishable by up to five years in prison.
Wolford’s friend sustained a gunshot wound to the hip and buttocks in the Feb. 22 incident.
According to Holly Police Chief Jerry Narsh, Wolford was intoxicated when his handgun discharged as he was reportedly moving it from his waistband to a backpack while seated in his friend’s vehicle. Wolford and his friend had reportedly been on their way home from an evening out when the friend pulled over on a dirt road in Holly to relieve himself. As the friend returned to the vehicle, he reportedly heard a loud pop and felt pressure in his right side, Narsh said.
Sentencing for Wolford is scheduled for May 16.
Case advances against man accused of shooting friend in butt while intoxicated