ELMIRA, OREGON – A man who was acting irrationally and forced his way into the home of a neighboring family was shot by the homeowner. The Lane County Sheriff’s Office says their 911 lines lit up around 3:30 a.m. on Thursday morning, with residents in the 24000 block of Horn Road reporting yelling and gunshots.
Several minutes into the calls, a female caller reported that a neighbor, identified as Brandon Coats, was outside her home and attempting to force his way inside. The caller said that her husband and small child were also in the home. The husband armed himself with a handgun to protect his family.
Coats, armed with a shotgun, managed to break the door open. “Coats was shot by the caller’s husband during the confrontation and held at gunpoint until Sheriff’s Deputies could arrive,” according to a LCSO spokesperson.
Coats, 34, was transported by ambulance to a local hospital, where he is being treated and is expected to survive. The victims in the incident were physically uninjured and are cooperating with the investigation, police said.
“The investigation to this point indicates that Coats, for a yet-to-be determined reason, fired several rounds from at least two firearms inside his residence and then went over to at least two neighboring residences demanding to be let inside,” the sheriff’s office said.
“The second neighboring residence is where Coats is alleged to have forcibly broken open the front door armed with a shotgun, resulting in the male homeowner shooting him,” LCSO said.
Coats is currently being held for Burglary 1, 3 counts of Menacing, Unlawful Use of a Weapon and Criminal Mischief. Authorities say that more charges could be forthcoming as the investigation progresses.
