Hobart, Indiana

From the Merrillville Post-Tribune of July 3, 2007

Hobart man arrested after he's shot

A shooting last week led to an arrest Monday -- the person who was shot.

Lawrence Halt, 43, took two shots to the chest and hand in from a handgun fired by Michael Peco, 39.

Peco shot Halt in his own home, apparently acting in self-defense, said Lt. Leo Finnerty of the Hobart Police. The Lake County Prosecutor's office is not filing charges against Peco.

Instead, Halt was charged with four felony counts Friday for trespassing, strangulation and two counts of criminal confinement.

Shortly before 6:30 p.m. June 26, Halt walked from his home in the 100 block of North Guyer Street and approached Peco, sitting on his porch on the 100 block of North Wilson Street.

Halt told Peco he wanted to work on his air conditioning unit, but Peco refused, according to court documents. Eventually, Halt made threatening comments against Peco and placed him in a chokehold.

Peco struggled loose and went inside. Halt entered Peco's home without permission. Peco retrieved his .25-caliber handgun from the bedroom moments before Halt grabbed him again, placing him in another chokehold, court documents state.

During the struggle, Peco shook loose and fired his gun at Halt. Peco then called 911.

Halt was found by police in the street, standing in a small pool of blood. He told officers that Peco came outside to shoot him. Police found a trail of blood leading from Peco's home.

Paramedics transported Halt to the St. Mary Medical Center, where tests showed his blood alcohol content level to be 0.28 percent. Halt was discharged two days later.

Nearly two hours before the shooting, Halt confronted another neighbor, Anne Allendorf, 46, in an alley between Guyer and Wilson streets, according to court documents.

Halt told Allendorf he wanted to shake her hand, and then grabbed her arm, pulled her closely and refused to let go. Allendorf broke loose and ran to her mother's house on Wilson Street, across from Peco's home. Allendorf and her son told police that they saw Halt choking Peco on his porch before the shots were fired.