Judge drops case against Detroit man accused of shooting lost teen: 'Dots are nowhere near being connected'

DETROIT (FOX 2) - After hearing from three witnesses Friday, including the victim, a Detroit judge dismissed charges against a man accused of shooting someone who was mistakenly dropped off at the wrong location last month.

Robert Pugh, 47, 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 for the April 9 shooting that wounded 18-year-old Claude Woosk.

The backstory:

Woosk, who has autism, called his sister for a ride that afternoon after an Uber dropped him off in the area of Lenox and Warren in Detroit. Woosk is from River Rouge and is not familiar with the area where he was dropped off. 

His sister, Violet Woosk, previously told FOX 2 that she told her brother, who she said often gets panicked and confused when in unfamiliar areas, to take a photo of a nearby address. 

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

Violet said police told her that her brother was shot while running from two men. One of those men, Pugh, turned himself into police a few days later and was charged.

Dig deeper:

The prosecution called three witnesses - the police officer in charge of the case, a neighbor who witnessed part of the interaction, and Claude Woosk - to the stand during Pugh's preliminary examination on Friday.

That neighbor, Gary Currenton, said he saw his neighbor talking with a person he did not know, identified later as Woosk, because Woosk had taken a photo of Currenton's house. Currenton said he asked to see the photo, told Woosk 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, witnessed his neighbor grab Woosk's shoulder, and heard him tell him to run, but did not see the shooting.

While being questioned, Woosk, 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 Woosk'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.

Woosk's autism diagnosis was not part of the court hearing. When the prosecution questioned Woosk about any disabilities, Judge Ronald Giles 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," Giles said.

What they're saying:

After reviewing the video and hearing from the witnesses and victim, Giles said there wasn't enough evidence to bind the case over to Third Circuit Court.

"I don't know if the person that was in that video is the same person that was here testifying," he said.

Before dismissing the case, Giles noted that no one saw the shooter. Giles also said that Woosk testified that no one touched him or talked to him, which doesn't match up with witness testimony.

"He said he had contact with no one," Giles said.

The judge also pointed out that Woosk testified that he did not take any photos. 

"These dots are nowhere near being connected," Giles said. "This is nowhere near being probable cause."

What's next:

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

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