SAN MATEO — It started with three Hillsdale High School students vandalizing a classmates’ house and ended in gunfire.
Now, a 54-year-old father was jailed and faces multiple felony charges in what prosecutors describe as teenage mischief gone wrong.
The father and homeowner – Craig Steven Miceli – was charged this week after firing a gun into a car containing three of his daughter’s classmates after the boys egged his house, two days after pouring oil on his porch, prosecutors say. None of the teens were hit by the bullets.
San Mateo County District Attorney Stephen Wagstaffe on Wednesday said that Miceli’s anger at the “pranks” the boys pulled is “understandable and justifiable.”
“But what is not justifiable … was when he chose to respond to it by taking out a gun and firing the gun at the car that the three boys were in,” Wagstaffe said Wednesday. “The danger involved in that is so high that it’s a felony crime to do so, and that’s why he is now facing multiple felony charges for that overreaction to the situation.”
Prosecutors charged Miceli with three felony counts of assault with a firearm with additional firearm enhancements, one felony count of firing at an inhabited vehicle, one felony count of illegal assault rifle and one felony count of possessing an assault rifle, prosecutors said.
If found guilty, Miceli, who does not have a criminal record, could face a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. He pleaded not guilty to all charges at his arraignment on Tuesday, where the court ordered him to not contact the three teenagers.
The three boys – ages 16 and 17 – spent last weekend driving around San Mateo. On Friday, prosecutors say they spread oil on the porch of Miceli’s home on the 1000 block of Annapolis Drive, not far from Bay Meadows Park.
Then, shortly after midnight on Sunday, they return to the same home armed with eggs. They threw them at the house and got back in an SUV. As the boys drove away, Miceli went outside with a handgun and fired two shots, prosecutors allege. One of the bullets entered the passenger side of the SUV and got lodged in the side panel, authorities said.
The boys didn’t make it far. Arriving police officers stopped the SUV and later interviewed Miceli.
The father said that his daughter has been a victim of bullying at the high school and expressed anger at having to clean the oil off his porch, authorities said. He told police he had fired his gun at the tires of the boys’ car and later ditched the weapon in Water Dog Lake, prosecutors said.
When investigators obtained a search warrant for Miceli’s house, they located an illegal automatic rifle and ammunition, prosecutors added.
As of Tuesday, Miceli remained in custody on $25,000 bail, prosecutors said. But jail records show he had since posted bail. Miceli will next appear in court June 9 for a preliminary hearing.
The three boys will not face charges for the vandalism, but will be dealt with by the San Mateo Police Department, which has a diversion program for teenagers that focuses on education and public service, Wagstaffe. The department did not submit the three minor’s actions to the DA’s office to be charged.
The DA said the allegations of bullying against Miceli’s daughter will be handled by Hillsdale High School.
The school and the San Mateo Union High School District referred requests for comment to the DA’s office but sent a message that was distributed to the high school community.
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“This is an ongoing criminal investigation with law enforcement and in our school community, and I want you to know that we will continue to work with students to ensure their wellbeing,” Hillsdale High School Principal Jeff Gilbert said in the email.
Wagstaffe added that this case is a “tremendous” opportunity for parents to have discussions with their children and a “good lesson” for teenagers.
“I’m sure the teenagers thought it was just laughing among themselves without being cognizant of how dangerous it could be,” Wagstaffe said. “You never know who you might encounter, and it could endanger your life.”
It is also a lesson for adults to “act with some self-control and not engage in gun play,” Wagstaffe added.
“If that shot,” he said, “had hit one of the boys and killed him, then he’s looking at the rest of his life in prison for murder. Fortunately, that didn’t happen.”
