Man accidentally shoots neighbor

A man was detained and later released after accidentally shooting a sleeping neighbor early Wednesday morning at an apartment complex east of Kalispell.

Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry said a 28-year-old woman called 911 from her apartment at 1501 Montana 35 at about 1:45 a.m. and said she was awakened by a burning sensation to her leg.

A responding deputy confirmed the woman had been shot below the knee of her right leg.

Neighbors reported hearing no gunshots and the woman said she was unsure of how she could have been shot.

She was taken to Kalispell Regional Medical Center where she was treated and released.

Curry said a 22-year-old man who lives next door called hours later to turn himself in. The man said he was cleaning a rifle when it fired a bullet through the wall separating his apartment and the woman’s.

“He panicked, freaked out and left,” Curry said, citing the deputy’s report.

The man was transported to the Flathead County Detention Center on suspicion of criminal endangerment, but was released on the advise of the Flathead County Attorney’s Office, Curry said.

No charges have been filed.