76-year-old woman shoots neighbor in the face with flare gun, New York cops say
A 76-year-old woman shot her neighbor in the face with a flare gun in an attack caught on video, which shows the man had been outside with his dog when she fired at him, according to media reports and police in Long Island, New York.
Kathleen Schuman was arrested on a second-degree assault charge in the Sept. 8 shooting that sent her 67-year-old neighbor to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Suffolk County police said in a statement to McClatchy News on Sept. 10.
The incident happened at the Belmont Villas Senior Apartments in West Babylon at around 5:45 p.m., according to police.
Home surveillance footage published by NBC New York shows Schuman approaching Richard Catrone from her apartment before she aims and fires the flare gun at his face.
Warning: The linked video contains explicit imagery and language.
Catrone, who had been holding his dog on a leash, races toward Schuman in response, the video shows. He is then seen grabbing her by the hair and pulling her to the ground.
“I wanted to protect my dog. I wanted to protect myself,” Catrone said, with six stitches in his face, in an interview with NBC New York. “Kathleen showed no emotion. She claimed I was the devil, that I tried to murder her. She said, ‘I’m sorry I missed, sorry I missed.’”
Schuman pleaded not guilty at an arraignment on Sept. 9, court records show.
She is represented by the Suffolk County Legal Aid Society. The nonprofit organization’s legal director, Agnes Neldner-Ratuszny, declined McClatchy News’ request for comment on Sept. 10, as the society has a policy “to not comment on ongoing litigation.”
Neighbors of Schuman and Catrone told News12 Long Island that the pair had been arguing.
While speaking with NBC New York, neighbors said Schuman and Catrone have had regular fights over their pets. Schuman has a cat, the outlet reported.
A company that manages Belmont Villas told News12 that “We are aware of an altercation that occurred yesterday evening between two residents of the Belmont Villas community.”
“This was an isolated incident between individuals and unrelated to the community itself,” the spokesperson for Conifer LLC added. “We are cooperating fully with law enforcement as they handle the matter.”
On Sept. 9, Schuman posted $5,000 bail after she had a partially secured bond set at $30,000, according to court records.
This story was originally published September 10, 2025 at 5:36 PM with the headline "76-year-old woman shoots neighbor in the face with flare gun, New York cops say."
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