FARGO – Thinking someone was trying to break into a south Fargo apartment over the weekend, a man inside the unit fired a rifle twice through the door, according to Cass County District Court documents charging him with two felonies.
James Russel Parks Jr., 31, of Barnesville, Minn., faces counts of reckless endangerment and unlawful possession of a firearm in connection with the Sunday, Nov. 26, incident.
According to court documents:
At 11:12 p.m. Sunday, officers were sent to an apartment building in the 3000 block of 11th Street South on a report of a disturbance in which possible gunshots were heard.
When officers arrived, they found two bullet holes through the door of an apartment and two bullet holes in the wall of a hallway opposite the door.
The occupants of the apartment, Parks and Jessica Ann Kristianson, 31, of Fargo, were detained and questioned.
Kristianson initially told police she was cleaning a .22-caliber rifle when it accidentally went off.
She later said that she and Parks were in the apartment when they heard what sounded like someone trying to use a key to open the door.
She said Parks grabbed the rifle and shot two times through the door. It’s unclear whether someone was actually trying to get inside the apartment. No injuries were reported.
She said she took the blame for shooting the gun because she knew Parks was not supposed to possess a firearm. The pair were then arrested.
Kristianson was charged with giving false information to law enforcement, a misdemeanor.
Her attorney, Mark Beauchene, did not immediately return a phone message Wednesday, Nov. 29. Court records did not list an attorney for Parks.
