Uniondale man, cops dispute account of shooting

A Uniondale man facing criminal charges for repeatedly firing his legally owned rifle into his front lawn says he was only trying to scare off a group of men who were menacing his family.

Speaking outside the home where he's lived all his life, the man, George M. Grier, 30, recalled how he went inside to retrieve the gun on Sunday night because the men, who were on the sidewalk in front of his house, were loudly arguing and appeared on the verge of violence after he asked them to move down the block.

" 'You're dead! Your family's dead!' " Grier, who works for a delivery company, recalled one of the strangers saying to him when he returned with the gun. Soon after, he fired what he called "warning shots," he said.

During the dispute, several of the men tried to incite his cousin to fight with them. Grier said he didn't know any of the men or the reason they congregated near his house.

He opened fire, he says, when about 15 additional men came charging toward his home.

But police, who charged Grier with felony reckless endangerment and misdemeanor possession of a dangerous weapon, question his version of events. They say Grier and his cousin had a verbal dispute with the men for arguing in front of his house. Police say he shouldn't have used a gun to try to settle what had been a verbal dispute.

Referring to the actions of the original three men, the department's chief spokesman, Det. Lt. Kevin Smith, said, "No punches are thrown. No weapons are displayed." No arrests were made besides Grier.

Smith says the police also have witnesses who contradict Grier's account, though Smith declined to elaborate. He says Grier should have called 911. Grier said, in an interview, he asked his wife to do so, though his two-page statement to police doesn't reference the request to call 911.

Smith says Grier created a hazard for the neighborhood by firing into the ground because the shot could have ricocheted and struck others.

Grier's defense attorney, John R. Lewis Jr. of Farmingdale, said he believes the facts of what happened Sunday evening don't support the charges.

"Firing into the ground causes no risk of anyone's death," he said. "He's justified in defending his family."

Grier said he had first wanted the men to move away from his house because his wife, Ylana, was sleeping inside.

Lewis added: "His conduct doesn't rise to the level of what he was charged with, from a legal perspective. Morally, I don't think he should have been charged."

Grier said he's had the gun, listed in court papers as an "RU Arms rifle, model SA/CUGIR," for about three years and practices at a firing range.