Suspect allegedly opened fire on friend, siblings
While allegedly high on marijuana and drunk on alcohol, a 23-year-old male shot a long-time friend and a sibling in the wee hours of the morning, prosecutors say.
The shooting took place at 21815 Oil Well Road south of Dearborn, northeast of a rest stop that sits along Interstate 29.
Court documents allege Jacob Westwood of Napoleon had been smoking marijuana and drinking booze with his friend and siblings for much of evening Friday and into Saturday morning.
According to the allegations, Westwood became highly intoxicated, which impaired his physical mobility. His condition prompted his siblings to lift him into the passenger seat of a pickup truck, hoping Westwood would sleep it off.
Approximately 15 minutes later, Westwood allegedly removed his gun from the center console and opened the door to the truck.
“Everyone was standing near the truck and saw Jacob Westwood attempting to get out of the truck,” a witness told police.
When someone asked him if he was alright, Westwood began firing his gun at his friend and siblings, striking two victims, authorities say.
After Westwood emptied all the rounds in the gun, he demanded a sibling hand him another magazine from the truck.
The sibling grabbed the loaded magazine from the truck to prevent Westwood from reloading the gun. While holding the magazine, the sibling reminded Westwood who he was and told him to calm down.
That’s when Westwood tossed the gun into the field, according to court documents.
When police arrived at the scene, they found a victim with a bullet wound to his right buttocks. The victim was transported to Mosaic Medical Center in St. Joseph, where medical personnel determined the bullet “chipped and possibly broke his pelvic bone,” states court documents.
The victim was transferred to KU Medical Center and required emergency surgery.
The second victim was transported to Northland Saint Luke’s Hospital by a witness at the scene. Due to the severity of his injuries, he was taken to Saint Luke’s on the Plaza for emergency surgery for a bullet wound that shattered his tibia, authorities say.
The victims are age 21 and age 23, according to authorities. The shooting occurred around 2:15 a.m. Saturday.
Westwood was taken into custody and charged with two counts of felony assault in the first degree and two counts of armed criminal action. Westwood is being held inside the Platte County Detention Center on a $50,000 cash only bond.
“Jacob Westwood willingly and knowingly drank an excessive amount of alcohol and ingested marijuana while possessing a firearm. Jacob then used his firearm to attack his family and friend while highly intoxicated. There is no sense of remorse or concern for any of the victims,” wrote a Platte County deputy in the court allegations.
