7 year old boy shot by Liberty County couple dies

HOUSTON (AP) - A 7-year-old boy died Saturday and a 30-year-old family friend was in serious condition after authorities said they were shot by a married couple who thought the off-roaders were trespassing on their property.

Donald Coffey Jr. died Saturday morning at a Houston hospital, less than two days after the boy was struck in the head with a shotgun blast, Liberty County Sheriff's Cpl. Hugh Bishop said.

The boy, his father, his 5-year-old sister and a family friend were off-roading about 40 miles northeast of Houston late Thursday when they were shot after stopping their vehicles so the children could go to the bathroom. Donald Coffey Sr. had a pellet wound in his right shoulder. Coffey's daughter, Destiny, was hit in the elbow but was in good condition.

Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center spokeswoman Alex Rodriguez said Patrick Cammack, 30, was upgraded from critical condition to serious condition after being shot in the head.

The married couple remained in the Liberty County Jail on Saturday on second-degree felony charges of aggravated assault. Bonds for Sheila Muhs, 45, and her husband, Gayle Muhs, also 45, were set at $25,000 apiece Saturday. They do not have an attorney, Bishop said.

The Muhs were interviewed by county investigators, Bishop said, but he did not have details on what they said.

The Houston Chronicle reported that suspects live in a small house on stilts with a rebel flag flying from the roof. A sign posted out front reads: "Trespassers will be shot. Survivers will be reshot!! Smile I will."

Bishop said the district attorney could upgrade the charges to murder on Monday.

"That is something they will look into with the DA," Bishop said. "We're still trying to get the circumstances behind the incident."

Cammack and the Coffeys were off-roading in the rural area on a levee that encircles a fishing lake. The area includes a dirt road, trees and a lot of overgrown brush, Bishop said, adding that it's not uncommon for people to go off-roading there.

Authorities allege the couple blasted the four people with shotguns after they mistakenly thought they were trespassing on their property. Liberty County Chief Deputy Ken DeFoor said the gunshots rang out about 9 p.m., when Sheila Muhs fired once with a 12-gauge shotgun. She then handed it to her husband, who also fired once.

DeFoor said Sheila Muhs called 911 and told the dispatcher, "They're out here tearing up the levee, so I shot them."

Bishop said there was no indication the shooting victims did anything threatening toward the Muhs.

"We have an 11-year-old witness who was in one of the vehicles who said they stopped to go to the bathroom," Bishop said.

Coffey and Cammack took a county road to the residential levee. Shortly afterward, DeFoor said, the shots were fired from about 40 yards away. DeFoor said the victims were unarmed.

DeFoor said the levee belongs to the subdivision and is not private property. He called the shooting "ludicrous."

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)