An 89-year-old New Jersey woman was shot in the leg at a local pizza parlor Monday when a customer’s gun went off, authorities said Tuesday.
William H. Schmieding, 70, was arrested Monday after accidentally shooting the woman at Frank’s Pizza in Flanders, according to the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office.
Mount Olive Township Police were dispatched to the scene on Route 206, where they located the woman suffering from a gunshot wound to her left leg. She was taken to a nearby hospital and is said to be in stable condition.
A subsequent investigation determined that Schmieding was eating at the restaurant with friends when he decided to remove his Smith and Wesson Bodyguard handgun from its holster and clear the ammunition. It resulted in the gun firing off a round, which struck the victim in her leg.
While Schmieding has a permit to carry a handgun, he was charged with two counts of aggravated assault, prohibited carrying of a firearm and violating safe firearm carry requirements.
He was being held in the Morris County Correctional Facility on Tuesday pending future court proceedings.
No other information was released, but officials said the investigation is ongoing.
