A man charged with verbally threatening his neighbors and pointing a gun at them entered a no contest plea to the charges against him during a session of Baxter County Circuit Court Monday.
Sixty-year-old Stephen Michael Kotlowski who lists an address in Henderson was put on probation for four years. Deputy Prosecutor Chris Carter told the court the victims had been adamant that they did not want Kotlowski to get time in prison.
In late August last year, the victims were pulling out of their driveway when they said they saw Kotlowski sitting outside his residence pointing a gun in their direction.
They told investigators that Kotlowski cocked the gun and aimed it their way again.
The victims, who said they cared about Kotlowski’s well-being and were aware that he was dealing with “a lot of emotional issues,” pulled into an adjacent driveway.
One of the victims asked Kotlowski why he was pointing the gun at them and that he told them to get off his property or he would kill them.
Kotlowski was reported to have pointed the gun at the victim and pulled the trigger twice, then laughed and said, “it ain’t loaded.”
He then pulled a knife and told the victim that if he didn’t leave the state, Kotlowski would cut his throat.
Deputies from the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office reported when they arrived on scene, they found Kotlowski “visibly intoxicated” and said he was confused as to why he would be in trouble if his gun had not been loaded when he pointed it at his neighbors.
According to the probable cause affidavit, deputies found a high-power pellet rifle, a can of pellets, a knife and two empty beer bottles in the area where Kotlowski was sitting.
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