JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A man was arrested for firing shots at a house party early Thursday morning in Lakeshore, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office.
The incident happened sometime after midnight at 5300 Fremont Street, where about 15 people gathered.
Police said no one was struck by the gun shots.
Police said Randall Wilkie, known as Wayne, (pictured, below) was upset about the noise from the party and shot at his neighbor's home. Wilkie is charged with 10 counts of assault or armed assault.
Wilkie's mother, Vanessa Rigdon, said her son called her from jail with a much different version of what happened. He claims he had just returned from the store and found his girlfriend, Shannon Lilly, in the driveway of their home at 5243 Freemont Street smoking a cigarette, his mother said.
Rigdon said three cars pulled up and nine people got out, eight women and one man.
"All he said was he came, there was a fight," Rigdon said. "There was nine of them and then a group of 14. It got out of control, and it happened quick."
There was an altercation, and some of those people started beating on his girlfriend, Rigdon said.
Wilkie went into the house, got a gun and came out shooting in defense of his girlfriend but didn't hit anyone, his mother said. She said Wilkie also punched a woman in the mouth.
"My son called from jail and said, 'Momma, it's not the way the news was broadcasting it,'" Rigdon said. "He said, 'I'm telling you, it happened in my front yard.' He says there's a lot of different things that happened."
The arrest report makes no mention of a house party or what started the altercation, which was at another house on Freemont Street. It does say detectives went to Wilkie's house, and he invoked his right to an attorney.
Wilkie's girlfriend, Shannon Lilly, told police she was beaten up and got a shotgun and started waving it around to defend herself. She was also arrested on nine assault counts, but is at Shands Jacksonville Medical Center.
Channel 4 crimes analyst Ken Jefferson said conflicting stories and confusion make it tougher for police.
"When you have conflicting stories, you find the truth somewhere in the middle," Jefferson said. "Now you have two people charged who may have been victims in this case. I'm not certain because I'm not privileged to every fact."
JSO said these neighbors had problems in the past, but did not disclose any details.
A man who does contract work at a house nearby says he showed up early Thursday to make sure everything was OK.
"I see a lot of kids playing around here all the time when I come here to work and they're riding bikes and skateboards, but it's not a normally dangerous neighborhood at all," John Chesser said.