Man accused of firing gun during altercation
MARION TWP — A Washington Township man is accused of firing a pistol outside a northern Butler County home during a confrontation with another man. No one was injured.
State police arrested 30-year-old Joshua J. Howland following the incident with the alleged 18-year-old victim around 5:45 p.m. Friday on the 500 block of Boyers Road in Marion Township.
Howland is behind bars on $50,000 bail. He is facing felony assault and other charges.
Police said that shortly after 6 p.m. they got a call for shots fired. Troopers arrived at the home and spoke to the victim's younger brother, a juvenile, who provided an eyewitness account.
The boy told police that the victim was at his home when the defendant pulled into the driveway in a pickup truck, authorities said.
A heated conversation between the victim and Howland ensued. Police said the defendant knew the victim.
The victim went into the home, saying he was calling police.
“When (the victim) returned from the residence,” according to Trooper Philip Treadway's affidavit, “Howland stated, 'I'm going to shoot you.'”
Howland allegedly went to his truck, got a .45-caliber pistol and fired four rounds. He reportedly got into his truck and drove away.
The direction of the gunfire, police said, was unclear and remains under investigation. Troopers recovered four .45-caliber shell casings at the scene.
Police said not only was Howland gone when they arrived, but the victim was also not there. Investigators said they still had not spoken to the 18-year-old as of Monday morning.
Troopers found Howland near a bar on Route 38 in Washington Township later that night. Treadway interviewed him around 10 p.m. at the barracks.
The defendant recounted getting into a verbal altercation with the victim, and the victim going into his house.
“Howland believed the (victim) was getting a firearm,” the trooper's affidavit said, “so he reached into his truck and fired several rounds into the ground.”
He also offered a possible motive for the altercation.
“Over the last two weeks,” court documents said, “his friend's yard was driven through and he believed (the victim) was the one (who) did it.”
On Friday, he said he drove to the victim's house to confront him.
Police said Howland appeared intoxicated when he was found, and he admitted to having consumed 12 beers since 2 p.m. that day.
At the county prison, he submitted to a portable breath test device, which allegedly indicated his blood-alcohol level was 0.201 percent. Under state law, a level of 0.08 percent is considered intoxicated for drivers.
District Judge Lewis Stoughton arraigned Howland on a felony charge of aggravated assault, misdemeanor charges of terroristic threats, simple assault and reckless endangerment and a summary charge of harassment. He was placed in the Butler County Prison.
Stoughton set several conditions on the bail, including that the defendant may only be released to the county probation office for pretrial supervision.
Additionally, he was ordered to have no contact with the victim, surrender all of his firearms to the sheriff's office and that he wear an alcohol-monitoring bracelet.
