Police: Man Surrenders After Shooting Assault Rifle

A man allegedly fired an assault rifle into the ground during an argument on an Oceanside roadside today, then fled to his parents' nearby home and holed up there for nearly two hours before surrendering.

The non-injury gunfire in the 200 block of South Ditmar Street was reported shortly before 2 p.m., according to police.

Patrol officers were flagged down by 32-year-old man who told them an acquaintance, 31-year-old Ryan Smith, had fired a shot from an AR-15 rifle during a quarrel that erupted while they were riding bicycles through the area, Lt. Leonard Mata said.

The weapon was in a canvas carrying bag that Smith allegedly reached into to pull the trigger, sending a bullet through the case and into the ground near the other man.

Smith then rode off, and the victim followed him as he rode several blocks to his parents' house and went inside, Mata said.

Officers surrounded the home, contacted the suspected by phone and tried to persuade him to come out and give himself up. His mother, meanwhile, walked outside with the rifle and turned it over to police.

Shortly before 4 p.m., Smith exited the residence and surrendered without further incident.

He was expected to be booked into Vista Jail on suspicion of negligent discharge of a firearm, according to Mata.

"The ownership of the rifle has not been established and is currently under investigation," the lieutenant said.

—City News Service