Gasconade County Republican

Franklin County Sheriff Gary F. Toelke identified the victim in the 1:33 p.m. shooting incident on Oct. 3 in St. Clair as Dylan N. Abernathy, 17, of Owensville.

“He’s doing remarkably well,” said Abernathy’s grandmother, Lisa Manion on Tuesday evening from Abernathy’s hospital room at Mercy Hospital St. Louis.

Manion said the shot pellets did not hit any bone or major nerves.

 Toelke said deputies were initially called to a residence in the 2000 block of Barton Road outside St. Clair for a reported peace disturbance. The caller, who has not been identified by the sheriff’s department, reported that “a subject was tearing up the inside of his father’s residence.”

Toelke reported that the caller, an 18-year-old male living with his father north of the Highway 30 and Highway 47 South junction, allegedly shot and wounded Abernathy following an argument which began inside the residence.

The 18-year-old was taken into custody for investigation of first-degree assault, Toelke reported.

“Upon arrival, deputies located a 17-year-old white male laying in the front yard of the residence,” Toelke said in a press release issued Oct. 3. “He had been shot in the leg. A second subject, identified as an 18-year-old white male who lives at the residence, came out of the residence and stated that he had shot the subject.”

Toelke said deputies learned that Abernathy had been staying at the Barton Road residence since Monday, Oct. 1. “An argument apparently began between the two teenagers at which time the 17-year-old was shot in the leg by the 18-year-old with a 12-gauge shotgun,” Toelke reported.

Manion said her grandson went to the home of his former Owensville High School schoolmate that Monday and was unable to find a way home that night. “He was stranded. The kid wouldn’t bring him home,” she said.

From Abernathy’s Facebook posts, a clearer pictured of what occurred becomes apparent. He wrote that an altercation began with pushing, slapping and shoving after he took some money from his friend to pay for gas in an effort to get a ride back to Owensville. Their altercation inside the home escalated. Abernathy ended up outside while the friend called 911 to report the incident.

A sheriff’s detective investigating the incident told The Washington Missourian the stories told by both parties were very similar. “The shooter went back inside to get the gun hoping the victim (Abernathy) would stay outside,” Det. Matt Corbett told The Missourian. “The victim kept pounding on the door, and the shooter opened it. The victim reached for the gun, and the shooter thought he was going to take it away, so he shot him in the leg.”

Abernathy posted the following comment, without punctuation, to his Facebook account on Friday:

“I calm down and knock on the door and tell him I’m done fighting…he opens the door and he has a shotgun so I stand up and assure him I’m not gunna (sic) hurt him I start up the stairs and slowly enter the house at this point the gun is pointed at my chest so I reacted and grabbed the barrel and pulled it down he then pulled the trigger and shot my left thy (sic).”

Posts made to Abernathy’s Facebook site identify the alleged shooter as a former OHS student who attended classes here as a junior during the 2010-11 school year. He began the 2011-12 school year at OHS but did not graduate with his class. He had not been formally charged as of Tuesday.

Capt. Don Jones of the FCSD said their investigation had been completed and turned over to the prosecuting attorney’s office in Franklin County for review.

Manion said her grandson had undergone two surgeries. He faces additional surgical procedures during the healing process, she said.