Several residents around South Washington Street in Eatonton called 911 when they reportedly heard multiple gunshots around 10:45 p.m. on Jan. 12.
According to his report, Eatonton Police Department Officer Chad Burket drove to the area and heard gunshots. After hearing several more gunshots, he located where they were coming from: the backyard of a residence on the 300 block of South Washington St.
“I witnessed several Hispanic males gathered around a bonfire in the backyard drinking,” he wrote. “When I pulled into the driveway, they all [abruptly went] inside the residence.”
Burket stopped the last one headed inside, identified as Filmo Medrano, so that he could talk to him.
“I could see that Filmo was very intoxicated by the way he was hardly able to stand without swaying,” Burket wrote in his report. “His speech when he spoke was slurred, and I could smell the strong odor of an alcoholic beverage on his breath. I could also see several alcoholic beverages scattered across the ground around the backyard.”
When asked, Medrano told the officer that he had fired a gun.
“I asked Filmo if he realized how dangerous that could be with him drinking and having his friends outside,” Burket wrote.
Medrano told the officer it was his own gun, he showed his Georgia Concealed Carry Permit, and said he was “only shooting into the ground.”
Burket pardoned it is not legal to be shooting a gun within the city limits, “and especially since he was very intoxicated.”
Filmo Sanchez-Medrano, 51, of Eatonton, was arrested and charged with discharging a firearm in the city, discharging a firearm while under the influence of alcohol, and misdemeanor reckless conduct.