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A California jogger was charged this week in the killing of a homeless man who was blocking the sidewalk.
Craig Sumner Elliott, 68, was jogging with his two dogs and pushing a cart on 28 September when he came across Antonio Garcia Avalos, 40, who was sleeping in the middle of the sidewalk, prosecutors in Orange county, California, said.
Elliott allegedly tried to wake Avalos by nudging him with the pushcart, whereupon Avalos started yelling at Elliott to leave him alone.
Elliott, who allegedly filmed their encounter, then brought a handgun out of his cart, prosecutors charged, adding that when Avalos stood and threw a shoe at Elliott, he ducked and responded by shooting Avalos three times.
Avalos subsequently died from his injuries. Elliott, who does have an active concealed carry permit issued by the local sheriff’s office, was arrested on 17 November in the incident.
He faces charges of voluntary manslaughter, and a felony personal firearm use enhancement, for the fatal shooting, prosecutors announced on Monday.
“This is a tragic set of circumstances that unfolded in the worst possible way over a minor inconvenience of a blocked sidewalk, and a man is dead as a result,” the Orange county district attorney, Todd Spitzer, said in a news release.
“This case is a stark reminder that taking the law into your own hands is never the answer and that there are consequences for your actions.”
Elliott was released on $100,000 bail. If found guilty on all counts he faces up to 21 years in prison.
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