An alleged confrontation over a damaged truck led to a fatal shooting around 11:40 p.m. Sunday night.
According to a statement from Liberty County Sheriff’s Capt. Ken DeFoor, the shooting was the result of an earlier alleged confrontation between two neighbors – Christopher Aaron Jorgensen, 32, and Edwin Thomas Baty, 55, and Baty’s friend, Alvin Ray Zachary, 51, on CR 126 off of FM 563 in the Moss Bluff area in south Liberty County.
“From details learned during the investigation, it appears there are three houses that sits on this one piece of property with Baty and Zachary living in one house and Jorgensen living in another. At some point during the evening, an argument developed with Jorgensen accusing Baty and Zachary of damaging his pick-up truck,” DeFoor wrote in an emailed statement. “During this alleged confrontation between Zachary and Jorgensen, Baty ran into his house with Jorgensen behind him and with Baty locking his bedroom door and securing his 12-gauge shotgun. Jorgensen is alleged to have kept trying to break the door down but the effort stopped after a short while.”
Thinking that Jorgensen had gone away, Baty allegedly opened the door to find Jorgensen still standing at the door and advancing on him.
“Baty fired two shotgun shots at Jorgensen but is was unknown if either of the shots hit Jorgensen as Jorgensen ran outside into the yard,” DeFoor said. “Baty told LCSO Investigator Worley that he then went to the front door and saw Jorgensen coming at him again toward the front door and that is when Baty fired a third shot that killed Jorgensen.”
Liberty County Pct. 1 Justice of the Peace Stephen Hebert responded to the scene, conducted an inquest and ordered an autopsy.
No charges are being filed at this time as the case will be referred to the grand jury for any possible action.