News

UPDATE:

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office has released a man arrested in the wake of a Benbow shooting, after finding that he acted in self-defense.

According to a release, the decision was made after the criminal investigations division completed interviews and reviewed evidence.

PREVIOUSLY:
An apparent dispute between neighbors near Benbow erupted into a shooting Wednesday that left one man in critical condition with a gunshot wound to the shoulder and another arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, according to the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office.

A release states that deputies were called to a residence on the 300 block of Twin Trees Road on the report of a shooting and found the victim, who was taken to the hospital. His name was not immediately released.


The suspect, 65-year-old Thomas Neil Harris, was found on a nearby property and taken to custody. His bail was set at $500,000.

According to the sheriff’s office, the case remains under investigation.

Read the full release from the sheriff’s office:

On March 20, 2019, at about 3:50 p.m., Humboldt County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to a residence on the 300 block of Twin Trees Road near Benbow for the report of a shooting that had just occurred.

Sheriff’s deputies quickly arrived on scene and located a 31-year-old male victim with a gunshot wound to the shoulder. The victim was transported to a local hospital in critical condition.

The suspect, 65-year-old Thomas Neil Harris, was located on a nearby property and taken into custody without incident. Upon further investigation, deputies learned that the shooting was the result of an ongoing civil dispute between the two men.

Harris was booked into the Humboldt County Correctional Facility on charges of attempted homicide. His bail is set at $500,000.

This incident is still under investigation.

Anyone with information regarding this case is encouraged to call the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251 or the Sheriff’s Office Crime Tip line at (707) 268-2539.