A call reporting shots fired last month has a Racine man facing more than a decade in prison for having possession of – and firing – a gun in the middle of the night.
Adam Randall was charged Wednesday in Racine County Circuit Court with a single felony count of possession of a firearm by a felon and one misdemeanor count each of disorderly conduct with a dangerous weapon and obstruction. If convicted, he faces up to 11-1/2 years in prison and/or up to $36,000 in fines.
Shots fired in the early morning
According to the criminal complaint, on April 24 a call of shots fired came in around 4:42 a.m., and officers on patrol heard gunshots in the area of the 2800 block of Washington Avenue. Police observed a man later identified as Randall talking on a phone while he stood on the porch of a residence on the same block. When they approached and asked him to raise his shirt to be sure he wasn’t concealing a firearm, he complied.
Officers say Randall told them he called the police about hearing shots fired behind his house. He entered the home through a side door, and police went around back where they found a gun case containing a handgun with the grip still warm and spent casings on the sidewalk near the door where Randall entered the home. Inside the case was paperwork indicating the gun did not belong to Randall.
When police attempted to contact Randall inside the home, a woman came outside and told them Randall was inside sleeping with a young child, the complaint continues. Sounds from near the top of the stairs signaled Randall may have been barricading himself inside the home, but he did send the child downstairs after officers yelled several times for him to do so.
The woman told police she and Randall had been arguing, and he went outside at some point. She said she heard the gunshots but went back to sleep. Police say she knew Randall had access to another woman’s gun, and when officers checked with her, she said Randall removed his belongings from her home earlier this year and took her gun at the same time. She didn’t report the gun stolen because she was afraid of Randall.
During questioning, Randall told police he and the registered gun owner purchased the gun in 2021 for home protection. Both parties were fully aware of Randall’s felon status and that he was prohibited from having a firearm. He would not tell officers how he gained possession of the gun, the complaint continues.
Randall was assigned a $7,500 cash bond and ordered to not have any contact with the woman he shared a home with or the small child. He will next be in court on May 19 for his preliminary hearing.
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