A 52-year-old Dunnellon man remains in the Marion County Jail more than a week after he called police and told them he was a felon in possession of a firearm and was holding a woman hostage.
Brian Michael Griffin was charged with possession of a weapon by a felon from another state and domestic battery after the incident, which happened the evening of April 14. He was still being held on $35,000 bond as of Friday, according to jail records.
Multiple units from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office responded to Griffin’s 911 call. Griffin told deputies he was OK and needed to go to jail, according to the arrest report.
After being read his Miranda warning, Griffin said he and the victim got into an argument and he grabbed her, picked her up and carried her to the bedroom. He said he then threw her on the bed and continued arguing with her, the report said.
Griffin said during the argument, the victim started packing her clothes and he pushed her, causing her to fall. He said he then grabbed a shotgun and tried to cycle it, but it wouldn’t cycle. Griffin said he took the gun out to the back porch and lubricated it using WD-40. He said he cycled the firearm, chambering a round, and then fired the weapon off the back porch of the residence, according to the report.
Griffin said he then walked to the shed in search of a piece of string to use on the trigger so he could pull it with using his toes. He said when he couldn’t find any, he called law enforcement and walked to the front of the home and waited for deputies to arrive. Griffin said he left the firearm beside the tree in the front yard, the report said.
Deputies found a rusted Maverick Model 88 12-gauge shotgun next to a tree in front of the residence. The gun was loaded and the safety was not engaged. A deputy took possession of the gun and walked around to the back porch, where he observed a bottle of WD-40 and a spent shotgun shell. The spent shell was collected as evidence and the deputy took the firearm to his patrol vehicle, where it was unloaded to reveal there were six live rounds, according to the report.
The victim returned to the residence and said she was arguing with Griffin when he picked her up, carried her to the bedroom and threw her onto the bed while yelling at her. She said while she was packing her clothes to leave, Griffin pushed her, causing her to fall, the report said.
The victim said Griffin then grabbed the shotgun, yelling at her for its poor condition before taking it outside. She said once he was out of the house, she left. The victim said Griffin never threatened her with the firearm, according to the report.
Griffin was previously convicted in California for threatening crime with intent to terrorize in January 1996 and first-degree burglary in October 1998. He’ll answer to the latest charges in Marion County Court on May 18.