Teen with autism shot in Detroit: Charges dismissed against accused shooter

DETROIT (FOX 2) - A judge dismissed a case against a Detroit man accused of shooting an 18-year-old who was lost near his home last month.

Robert Pugh, 47, was facing charges after Claude Woosck was shot in the area of Lenox Street and E. Warren Avenue on April 9. On Friday, a judge in Detroit's 36th District Court dropped the charges, saying that there wasn't enough evidence to send the case to trial.

Dig deeper:

The prosecution called three witnesses - the police officer in charge of the case, a neighbor who witnessed part of the interaction, and Woosck.

That neighbor, Gary Currenton, said he saw his neighbor talking with a person he did not know, identified later as Woosck, because Woosck had taken a photo of Currenton's house. Currenton said he asked to see the photo, told Woosck to delete it, and went back into his house. A few minutes later, he said he heard gunshots. 

Currenton also testified that he saw his neighbor armed with a gun and heard him tell Woosck to run, but did not see the shooting.

While being questioned, Woosck, who has autism, said he was dropped off in the wrong location by an Uber. He testified that he called his sister for a ride, but did not take any photos while speaking to her. He also testified that he did not talk to anyone.

According to Woosck's testimony, he was walking toward Warren when an unknown person shot him in the back twice. Video from a nearby liquor store showed a person running.

Before dismissing the case, the judge noted that no one saw the shooter, and pointed out that Woosck said no one touched him or talked to him.

Woosck's autism diagnosis was not part of the court hearing. When the prosecution questioned Woosck about any disabilities, the judge shut down the question, saying that it was not relevant and he was not informed about any health conditions prior to court. The prosecution argued that the autism diagnosis was important because it could impact the victim's ability to recall what happened.

"I should've been asked to make an assessment on that before he started talking," the judge said.

The backstory:

During the afternoon of April 9, an Uber mistakenly dropped Claude Woosck off in the area of Lenox Street and E. Warren Avenue in Detroit rather than at his home in River Rouge. While in an area he didn't know, Claude, who experiences panic and confusion when in unfamiliar settings, called his sister, Violet Woosck.

"All you heard was my brother saying ow ow ow, and then it was complete silence," she said.

Violet learned later from the police that during that silence, her brother was shot in the back trying to run away from two men allegedly attacking him.

"It went quiet, and then all you heard him screaming, and then I told him, I said, ‘I have to hang up with you. I have to call the police,’" she said.

Violet said she told her brother to take a photo of a nearby address. This is what led to Pugh allegedly coming outside, frisking her brother, and shooting him in the back as he ran away.

"Some guy came out and yelled, 'Why are you taking pictures of the house?' and as soon as the guy came out yelling, he's already in tears because he's special needs as it is, so he's already scared because he doesn't know anywhere around there," she said.

After turning himself into police several days after the crime, Pugh was charged with assault with intent to murder, assault with intent to do great bodily harm, carrying a weapon with unlawful intent, and three counts of felony firearm.

What's next:

The case was dismissed without prejudice, meaning that charges could be re-filed at a later date. 

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