(7/8/98)
GETTYSBURG, Pa. (AP) -- A Frenchman who came to Gettysburg for a re-enactment of the Civil War battle has been charged with assault after another faux soldier was shot in the neck.
Christian Evo, 52, of Muret, France, didn't mean to shoot Clinton Wakefield Epps last Friday during a re-enactment of the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg, State Police Sgt. Patrick Gebhart said Tuesday.
``There was no intent involved, but a recklessness and negligence involved,'' Gebhart said.
Epps, of Charlottesville, Va., was in satisfactory condition Tuesday with a gunshot wound to the neck.
The three-day event, billed as the largest Civil War re-enactment ever, drew 35,000 spectators.
Evo was arrested Tuesday in Washington, D.C. He was scheduled to appear at a hearing this afternoon to determine if he should be extradited to Pennsylvania. He faces charges of simple assault and recklessly endangering another person.
Epps, a re-enactor with the Confederate 7th Virginia regiment infantry, was part of a late afternoon skirmish Friday when he found himself away from his unit, surrounded by Union soldiers and horses. He felt something strike his neck and fell to the ground.
At first, he could not get help from other re-enactors because they thought he was play-acting. He said he never saw who shot him.
Rules specifically ban the use of live ammunition in the re-enactment.
Doctors removed a .44-caliber missile ball from his neck. It was believed to have come from a replica or a Civil War-era revolver.
"These people are ridiculous," commented a spectator. "Next time, Frenchy, five inches higher."