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'Don't shoot, I'm a kid': Peach County families outraged after kids say woman pointed gun at them

A Peach County woman is charged with aggravated assault after she allegedly pointed a gun at two kids riding their bikes on property she owned.

PEACH COUNTY, Ga. — On Sunday afternoon, 12-year-old Kaleb Barnes and 13-year-old Ethan Hollis say they were riding their bikes in a Byron subdivision when a woman pulled a gun on them.

"We started hearing animal noises like goats and ducks, so we were gonna go check it out, so we went there to go check it out," said Barnes.

Barnes says he and his best friend ride their bikes in the Autumn Cove subdivision all the time, but this time they went to see where the animal noises were coming from.

That's when a woman in a black car showed up.

"My friend Ethan started running and I just stood there and said, 'Don't shoot, don't shoot, I'm a kid,' and I tripped on those rocks," said Barnes.

Barnes and Hollis say that woman was Patricia Compton, a neighbor in the subdivision who owned the property where the animals were. 

Hollis ran to the home of Henry and Venita Kennedy, Barnes' grandparents, to tell them what happened. 

Venita says she went live on Facebook to capture what happened when deputies arrived.

"When the officer was explaining the law to her, she then told the officer that if the kids had approached her, she would have shot them. This is what we're dealing with," said Kennedy.

Kennedy says she wanted this to be a teaching moment. She says some people may not understand the law on trespassing and when you can use a gun to protect yourself. 

In this case, Peach County Sheriff Terry Deese says Compton can't claim self-defense because she was not in any danger.

"The basics of it is you have to feel threatened that somebody's about to do you serious bodily injury or death or serious damage to property," said Deese.

He says the confrontation happened in broad daylight, the kids did not have any weapons, and Compton did not wait for law enforcement to arrive.

That's why he supports the deputy's decision to arrest and charge her with one count of aggravated assault. 

Kennedy says she's glad Compton was charged, but she wants justice for her grandson and his friend.

"No kid should ever come outside to play and have an adult pull a gun on them," said Kennedy.

Deese says Compton was released on bond, but there could be more charges to come. 

13WMAZ reached out to Patricia Compton to get her side of the story, but she did not return our calls.

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