Klecatsky and Sons Funeral Homes

Criminal charges paint a picture of a drunken man angrily pointing a loaded gun in the general direction of a buddy for leaving him at a bar and snoozing in his hallway. The defendant’s cousin, however, told authorities that the two men wrestled playfully and the pistol went off.The charges against Michael Cody Schwartz, 25, say he had been up late drinking at a Burnsville bar on Friday night with his cousin and the victim, Logan Daniel Ahlers, 25, also of Burnsville.After the bar closed, the two men left without Schwartz. Within an hour, Ahlers called Schwartz at his apartment and asked to be let in; Schwartz told investigators he refused. Instead, Schwartz took his Glock pistol and went out to his truck, where he was joined by his cousin, according to the charges. The cousins went inside, where Schwartz loaded the gun and cocked it, showing it off.Later, the cousins found Ahlers lying in the hallway near the entrance to another apartment. Schwartz, annoyed at being abandoned at the bar, told authorities he called Ahlers a “jackass,” according to charges. Ahlers rushed at Schwartz and the two wrestled. The gun went off, shooting Ahlers in the neck, the complaint states. The bullet exited his skull, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.Interviewed separately, the cousin told investigators that Ahlers rushed into the apartment so quickly, he didn’t immediately realize it was him. He said “the victim grabbed the defendant and began wrestling around with him like he was playing. Within just seconds after the victim’s entry, the gun went off.” “Tragically, it took a life,” Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom said. “It’s an example of the dangers associated of mixing alcohol with guns. … It’s negligence. We’re not alleging there was any intent to kill.”Questioned Monday before charges were filed, Ahlers’ father said the two men had been friends “since they were really little.”Dennis Ahlers said his son and Schwartz were likely horsing around, and he did not suspect foul play.“We believe it was an accident,” Dennis Ahlers said. He declined to comm... (Pioneer Press)