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The Pennsylvania Superior Court last week upheld the conviction of a Cambria County man on two counts of endangering the welfare of children by leaving them in his home with a loaded handgun and an AK-47 style rifle.
On Aug. 11, 2020, Summerhill Township police went to the Evergreen Road home of Justin D. Schoenfeld, 42, after a neighbor complained he heard several gunshots being fired near his property.
When he investigated, the shots at first appeared to be some distance from his home, but he said the shots kept getting closer to his property line.
He then saw muzzle flashes near his property line with the Schoenfeld property, causing him to call police.
Schoenfeld came out of his home to talk to police and he informed the officer he had guns in his home.
Two young children heard Schoenfeld's conversation with an officer and they said, "We'll get the guns for you."
The two children went to grab the guns, a move that startled the officer who yelled for them to stop.
Police found the guns behind a recliner in the living room. The weapons were identified as an AK-47-style rifle and a loaded 9 mm handgun.
Schoenfeld was convicted on two counts of endangering the welfare of the two young children, ages 5 and 7 at the time, and was sentenced by Cambria County Judge Norman A. Krumenackwer III to 12 to 24 months in state prison to be followed by five years' probation.
Schoenfeld appealed the verdicts and his sentence.
His appeals attorney, Timothy S. Burns of Ebensburg, argued that there was not sufficient evidence to convict Schoenfeld.
The defense during the trial admitted Schoenfeld had placed the guns in his living room but contended the childrens' mother was present and supervising his children while Schoenfeld was outside talking to the investigating officer.
"I was right there," she testified.
She said the children were not touching the guns and emphasized she would not have permitted them to grab the weapons.
She was asked if at any time she felt the children were endangered by their proximity to the weapons?
"No," she answered.
On appeal, the trial judge in his opinion concluded that Schoenfeld had placed a loaded handgun in an area easily accessible to his children.
The judge concluded it was up to the jury to determine if the level of supervision was appropriate in view of the guns being in the living room.
A three-judge Superior Court panel that included Victor P. Stabile, Megan Sullivan and Dan Pellegrini stated in their opinion, "We have little to add to this discussion."
The appeals court judges referred to the testimony that the firearms were put behind a recliner but were left in open view.
The testimony by a police officer showed the children knew where the weapons were and they tried to retrieve them, according to the appeals court opinion.
"Consequently under these circumstances, we find the (prosecution) presented sufficient evidence for the jury to find that Schoefeld threatened his children's physical welfare by leaving a loaded firearm out in the open only a few feet away from them," stated the Superior Court opinion written by Pelligrini.
State court records show Schoenfeld is on parole.