Trio shot AR-15 into air near Scotland Elementary during community event, police say

Three people are to appear in court Tuesday after a neighbor accused them of shooting an AR-15 into the air while a community event was taking place at a nearby elementary school. 

Debra Kay Berrier, 38, Chambersburg; William Allyn Carter Jr., 41, Fayetteville; and Christopher Branden Kirks, 22, Doylesburg, are each charged with terroristic threats - cause serious public inconvenience, recklessly endangering another person and propulsion of missiles onto roadways. All have also been cited for disorderly conduct. 

The incident happened July 6 in Greene Township. Police were dispatched at about 9:20 p.m. to the 3700 block of Scotland Main Street for a report of shots fired. 

A woman told police three people at a neighboring home had been shooting rounds into the air from an "AR" rifle in front of their residence, Pennsylvania State Police wrote in charging documents. 

More:Wanting to go back to jail, Hagerstown man punches officer in the face after release

More:"Drinking and smoking weed all day," man in Volkswagen Beetle leads police on chase

Police located the defendants, all intoxicated, standing under a partially covered garage. They said they had been shooting off fireworks before police arrived. Berrier said she had thrown the remnants into the garbage at the back of the house, but when police asked her to go retrieve them she admitted that she, Carter and Kirks had actually been shooting guns, documents state. 

They went into the house where the guns were stored. Police found a Ruger AR-556 - a type of AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle - with a barrel that was still warm from recently being shot. A Mossberg Maverick 88 pump-action shotgun was found alongside the rifle. 

Police noted in charging documents that the home is in a heavily populated rural neighborhood. Google Maps shows it is surrounded by houses. 

In addition, it is located a short distance from Scotland Elementary, which was hosting an event that evening attended by about 100 people, more than half of them children, police said. 

Berrier, Carter and Kirks are each scheduled to appear at a preliminary hearing at 1 p.m. Tuesday before Magisterial District Judge Glenn Manns in Franklin County District Court. Their original preliminary hearings scheduled in July were continued. 

More:Woman punched cop and caused 'major traffic hazard' on Chambersburg street, police say

More:Chambersburg man sentenced to 2-10 years in prison for child porn possession