A tense parking lot showdown outside the East Liberty Home Depot on Monday left shoppers rattled after a driver allegedly rolled his vehicle over a cement barrier toward a family, then pulled a gun from his car during a heated confrontation. Store workers quickly moved the man inside before officers arrived, and police later charged him with terroristic threats and multiple counts of recklessly endangering another person. The man told officers he felt threatened by the person who confronted him and denied pointing the gun at anyone.
Police and court papers describe the incident
According to court documents, officers say the trouble started when 47-year-old Howard Finney drove over a cement barrier in the Home Depot lot and in the direction of a man, a woman, and three children. Witnesses told police that Finney then went back to his vehicle, pulled out a gun, and switched off the safety. Employees hustled him into the store before police reached the scene. Finney is now charged with terroristic threats and four counts of recklessly endangering another person, as reported by WPXI.
Shoppers describe the scene
People in the lot told reporters the confrontation shook families and fed into broader worries about guns showing up in everyday errands. “Pulling a gun out on a family is crazy, man, broad daylight,” shopper Garrett Cogdell said, while another shopper, Bob Cox, told WPXI that “people are pretty liberal with their guns, carrying them or pulling them out to threaten or whatever reason.”
Charges and court status
Court paperwork identifies Finney as 47 years old. The criminal complaint states he told officers he felt threatened by the man who confronted him in the parking lot, and it notes that he denied pointing the gun at anyone. The filing does not allege that he aimed the weapon at a specific person. Booking information and a preliminary hearing date were not immediately available on Tuesday.
Where it happened…