Granada Hills Man Guilty in Gun Incident

A Granada Hills man who last year fired a shotgun over the heads of guests at a Halloween party was convicted Tuesday of disturbing the peace and was sentenced to probation.

The man, Kenneth Linthicum, 60, had been charged with three counts of felony assault with a firearm for breaking up the costume party about 1:30 a.m. on Oct. 28, 1984, at his next-door neighbor’s house by firing the shot, Deputy Dist. Atty. Mark Geiger said.

The neighbor, Laura DeRosa, and a guest, Eugene Gonzales, suffered minor injuries when they were hit by pellets from the blast. They have filed a suit against Linthicum seeking $1 million in damages.

During the criminal trial in San Fernando Superior Court, Linthicum testified that he called police three times in an effort to quiet the party, which featured a disc jockey and a band. Police testified that their records show that only one call was placed.

Linthicum, who worked as an airline pilot, told jurors that he had completed two round-trip flights to Tokyo during the 12 days before the party and was “exhausted” when he arrived home about two hours before the shooting incident. He said he slipped as he was carrying the gun toward the party and fired the shot accidentally.

Linthicum retired from flying shortly after the incident, Geiger said.

Superior Court Judge Howard J. Schwab sentenced Linthicum to two years’ summary probation, meaning he will not have to report to a probation officer, and ordered him to pay a $250 fine immediately after jurors convicted Linthicum of the misdemeanor charge.