Father Charged With Shooting Daughter's Boyfriend

Last updated Friday, August 17, 2007 9:47 PM CDT in News

By Robin Mero
THE MORNING NEWS

    BENTONVILLE -- A man accused of shooting and paralyzing a 19-year-old man he found hiding in his daughter's bedroom was charged Friday with first-degree battery and a terroristic act.

    George David Reed, 48, of 13569 Vaughn Road in Bentonville, was arrested July 31 and is free on a $150,000 bond. He is to be arraigned Sept. 10 before Benton County Circuit Judge David Clinger.

    Reed came home unexpectedly from work mid-morning on July 31 to find his daughter's boyfriend, Michael Austin Guzman, hiding in the girl's closet. His daughter Morgan, 17, had recently confessed she was allowing the boyfriend to sneak in at night, and her parents had told Guzman not to be in the home without adult supervision.

    Guzman parked his car down the road that morning and had the girl pick him up, but a friend noticed the vehicle and called to warn the father, court documents state.

    Police say Reed beat Guzman with a pool stick, then left the room to get a gun from his nightstand. When he returned, the teens were blocking the door with a dresser and Reed began shooting through the door. A bullet struck Guzman in the back and lodged in his spinal cord.

    Three of his vertebrae are fractured and doctors don't expect Guzman to regain feeling or mobility below his waist. Guzman is still in a Joplin, Mo., hospital but is out of intensive care and will soon be transferred to a Fayetteville hospital, said Shane Wilkinson, chief deputy prosecutor.

    If convicted, Reed could face up to life in prison.

    The battery charge applies to the intent to cause serious physical injury and is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. The charge of terroristic act applies to the actual injury caused. It is the most serious type of felony aside from capital murder and is punishable by up to life in prison.

    Reed is represented by Fayetteville attorney W. H. Taylor.

    Taylor said after a bond hearing earlier this month Reed has three children and lives with his wife, Sharon, at their home near Highfill. Reed has been in Northwest Arkansas since 1962, owns a farm and rental properties, and has operated a moving and storage business since 1983.

    Reed has no criminal history.

    Reader Comments (11 comment(s))


    The following comments are provided by readers and are the sole responsibility of their authors. The Morning News does not review comments before their publication, nor do we guarantee their accuracy. By publishing a comment here you agree to abide by our comment policy. If you see a comment that violates our policy, please notify the web editor.

    prtzman wrote on Aug 18, 2007 8:47 AM:

    " While I can understand the type of rage a man could be in when he found a boy in his teenage daughters room, I can't condone the action that he is accused of. Should he be found guilty, I hope the punishment fits the crime. One things for sure the civil case that will no doubt come along after the criminal case will likely clean him out financially. "

    Citizen wrote on Aug 18, 2007 1:48 PM:

    " Wow! Sammysmith. I don't know where you got all that from. Certainly not this article. You are so far away from this issue it's not even funny. I think you should go live in another country where the cops truely are owned by the Gov. there and see how you like it. Thank God for for the men and women who want to be cops for all the right reasons. If someone breaks in, threatens your family, who will you be calling? "

    international traveler wrote on Aug 18, 2007 2:46 PM:

    " George, Good luck....Hope all goes well... "

    Citizen wrote on Aug 18, 2007 11:05 PM:

    " Sammysmith, you have to resort to calling names. You can't debate with facts,knowledge, or common sence. Call me what you will. I have lived in other countries. I am an Air Force Veteran. I have served my country, taken care of countless Soldiers, Airmen, and Marines and watched some die for what they believed in. Trust me, I can handle freedom. I will repeat what I said earlier. You were way off from this article. You got lost in some kind of angry rant that had nothing to do with the article. If you need to call me names, then do. It's a free country and I believe in free speech. I've seen what freedom truely costs. "

    Madison wrote on Aug 19, 2007 3:22 PM:

    " Folks I think some of the butter done slipped off sammysmith's biscuit.LOL "

    largebear wrote on Aug 20, 2007 12:32 PM:

    " The prosecution of Mr. Reed is extreme! This boy was an unwelcome intruder in Mr. Reed's home. He was blocking the door. The young man should have left when Mr. Reed went to get a gun. Failure to leave and taking control of a portion of this man's home indicates the boy got justice! The prosecution of this man lessens our rights to defend our homes from intruders both known and unknown! "

    ashortcutie2005 wrote on Aug 20, 2007 2:49 PM:

    " I personally think the father was in the wrong by shooting the kid. Beating him is one thing but shooting him. He technically wasnt an intruder b/c the daughter obviously invited him into the house. "

    sammysmith wrote on Aug 20, 2007 6:19 PM:

    " emperor sammysmith in charge here this father is innocent. The boyfriend was warned not to visit the home without adult supervision. "

    majicktrix wrote on Aug 24, 2007 6:13 PM:

    " I would expect nothing less of my husband if my daughter's boyfriend was warned not to be in my home unsupervised and he trespassed anyway. Keyword-trespassed, because that is what the boy did. Er, sorry, MAN, that is what the MAN did! He trespassed and hid in the closet. The only thing that frightens me about this is that the father shot at the door, he could have really hurt the girl. "

    gary wrote on Aug 24, 2007 9:04 PM:

    " Largebear, if you read the article you will see that the daughter and the young man, blocked the door only after the father beat the so called intruder and left the daughters bedroom to get a gun. I don't know about you, but was the young man in any shape to run out of the house? Was he to scared, because the father might have been saying things that would make him fear to try to leave? I don't call that justice. "

    Kahuna wrote on Aug 26, 2007 11:35 AM:

    " I have read comments and stories about George being a good man. I do not know him so I can not comment on that. I do know that he did something wrong, yes the boy should not have been there, yes the daughter should have known better. Yes that boy deserved a good whippin' but honestly to shoot him was a bit extreme. To shoot through the door with his daughter on the other side even worse. As a parent the only thing I can think of is rage. The rage that some man was in the bedroom with his daughter I imagine him seeing the ruffled bed sheets and just losing control. How should he be punished, I do not know but I do know two families are torn apart. A daughter who I am sure will never forgive herself and a boy who will never walk again. "


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