Man Shoots, Kills Neighbor After Argument Over Lawn Mower

A man has been accused of shooting and killing his neighbor following an argument over a lawn mower in Kansas City, Missouri on Sunday, Aug. 7.

The accused, identified as Samuel Avery, 42, of Kansas City, has been charged with second-degree murder and armed criminal action after he allegedly shot and killed his 41-year-old neighbor Warner Trotter, on his front porch in the 3500 block of Garfield Avenue on Sunday, Aug. 7, after the two engaged in a heated argument, WFLA reported.

On Sunday, Aug. 7, law enforcement received a phone call from Avery reporting to them that he had shot his neighbor Trotter. When the officers responded to the scene, they found Trotter lying on the front porch of the residence with a gunshot wound in his head. He was quickly transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Officers also found Avery on his porch next door and arrested him without incident.

According to Avery, on the day of the shooting, Trotter complained that Avery’s lawn mower was too loud and made a gesture with his hand threatening that he would shoot Avery. Even though Avery called the police, he was told that nothing could be done, the Kansas City Star reported.

Hours after the incident, Trotter and a woman returned to the residence with food from a restaurant. The woman who returned home with Trotter told the police that while she was inside the house, she heard Trotter ask Avery something like, “Do you have something to say?" which was then followed by the sound of several gunshots.

According to Avery, Trotter reached for a gun before Avery started firing his weapon. However, CCTV surveillance footage obtained from Trotter’s home showed Avery firing at Trotter several times just after Trotter starts to enter the house after saying something to Avery. The video does not show Trotter reaching for his weapon at any time.

Avery’s bond was set at US$100,000. He was ordered to be on house arrest with a drug and alcohol dependency program. He was also ordered to wear a tracking device and not to possess any weapons.

Prior to the shooting incident, the officers had been called to the men’s homes twice because they were arguing over Avery mowing his lawn too early in the day. However, no one was arrested during those incidents. Avery told investigators that they had been arguing for the past 10 years regarding the lawn moving issue.