Pleasanton man charged with shooting into adjacent apartment while drunkenly cleaning his gun

PLEASANTON — A city resident accidentally fired a shot into the apartment of a family he shared a wall with, while cleaning his firearm, court records show.

When police responded to a shots fired call at Arroyo Court on Feb. 28, they immediately noticed something else: the suspected shooter reeked of vodka, and there was apparently a good reason why. He admitted to drinking about 350 ml of Smirnoff that afternoon, authorities said in court records.

Now, the 37-year-old Pleasanton man faces a misdemeanor charge of negligently discharging a firearm. Police say the man’s neighbor had to pull a bullet out of his wall, but that luckily no one was hurt.

The shooting occurred around 7 p.m., when the suspect’s neighbor reported hearing a loud bang, then discovering a bullet-sized hole in the wall he shared with his neighbor. The projectile apparently went through the pantry and lodged into a wall, missing the married couple and their two children.

The alleged shooter was cooperative with police, and explained that the shot went off while he was cleaning his gun. He inserted a loaded magazine into the pistol while keeping the trigger depressed. The shot ricocheted off his kitchen counter into his wall, he said, according to police.

After the gun went off, he went next door to check on his neighbors, police said.