Franklin J. Howard, 47, of Bellefontaine is facing three charges – one of which is a felony – following an incident at his home Friday, Oct. 10 at 8:40 p.m. where he reportedly threatened to shoot his neighbors following an argument.
Officers of the Bellefontaine Police Department report that after a loud argument between Howard and a neighbor, Howard issued a threat to shoot the complainant. A witness later reportedly saw Howard outside the apartment with with a gun in his hand, while another witness called and gave an account of the situation as well as a description of Howard.
Several BPD units were then dispatched to the apartments at 450 Kristina Drive, where officers evacuated neighboring apartments and secured the scene.
The report states that after the scene was secured, Howard walked out of his apartment in an obviously intoxicated state. He was arrested at gunpoint and no weapon was found on his person, but he reportedly admitted to threatening to shoot neighbors.
After his arrest, Howard offered to show police the hand gun, a .380 semi-automatic, which was found under a table in his apartment.
Howard was transported to the Logan County Jail and charged with having weapons under a disability, a third-degree felony, as well as using weapons while intoxicated and aggravated menacing, both of which are first-degree misdemeanors.
A routine background check following his arrest revealed that the defendant has a long criminal history with six OVI convictions, the last coming in 2023, and three public intoxication convictions in Kentucky.
The handgun was secured as evidence and the report was forwarded to the Logan County Prosecutor’s Office for further consideration of changes.
