Deputies say the Merrifield man threatened the teen before a shotgun blast shattered a window.

BRAINERD, Minn. — A 72-year-old Merrifield man has been charged with attempted murder after authorities say he shot his 18-year-old grandson with a shotgun during a family dispute over a fish house.

Jonathan Boyd Berg was charged May 5 in Crow Wing County District Court after a May 3 shooting at a home in Center Township. Deputies said the case began as an argument over whether the teenager had stored a fish house, then grew into threats, a physical fight and a gunshot that left the teen wounded with birdshot.

The complaint describes a daylong family conflict that moved from angry words to violence. Relatives told investigators Berg had been upset that his grandson had not stored the fish house, a shelter used for ice fishing. During the earlier argument, authorities said, Berg struck the teen in the mouth. The teen hit him back, and Berg then threatened to shoot the teen’s dog. The teen’s mother stepped in before her son and another boy left the home to go fishing. Investigators said that did not end the tension inside the house.

About an hour before the shooting, the teen’s mother told deputies, Berg asked her when her son was coming home so he could shoot him. She also told investigators Berg had been drinking heavily and had consumed about two gallons of Windsor whiskey over the previous few days. The complaint said Berg remained angry while the teen was away. By the time the teenager returned around 9 p.m., the dispute had shifted from a complaint over a chore to what prosecutors now describe as a planned attack.

The mother told deputies she spoke briefly with her son after he came home. Moments later, she heard a gunshot, breaking glass and her son screaming. She turned and saw Berg sitting on his bed with a 16-gauge shotgun, according to the complaint. The gun appeared to be smoking, authorities said. The teen had injuries from birdshot, with reports describing wounds to his back and lower body. The complaint said deputies later found a pattern of wounds consistent with pellets from a shotgun shell.

After the shot, the mother confronted Berg and asked why he had shot her child. Berg responded by threatening her too, according to investigators. The woman gathered her son and fled the residence. Deputies said they were first sent to the home for a shooting call, then learned the victims had gone to a nearby Dollar General store. That is where law enforcement found the woman and the injured teen. The store became the first safe place for the mother and son after the gunfire at the home.

The charges filed against Berg include felony first-degree premeditated attempted murder, first-degree assault with great bodily harm, second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon causing substantial bodily harm, second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and threats of violence with reckless disregard of risk. The filings put the case in Crow Wing County District Court, where prosecutors will have to prove not only that Berg fired the shot but also that the shooting met the legal standard for premeditation. The charge of first-degree premeditated attempted murder places the alleged threat before the shooting at the center of the case. Investigators said the mother’s statement about Berg asking when the teen would return is part of the evidence. So is the timeline laid out in the complaint, which says the teen left after the earlier fight, Berg remained at the home, and the gunfire occurred after the teen came back. The defense has not been laid out in the public reports reviewed for this article.

The shooting took place in Center Township, a rural area near Merrifield in Crow Wing County, where homes, lakes and fishing culture are part of daily life. A fish house can be a routine seasonal item in northern Minnesota, especially around ice-fishing areas. Authorities have not said the shelter itself had any value beyond its role in the family argument. The complaint frames the fish house as the spark for a larger conflict inside one household.

Berg was booked into the Crow Wing County Jail after the shooting. Reports said a judge set bail at $750,000 without conditions or $300,000 with conditions. His next court hearing was scheduled for May 14. The hearing was expected to move the case into its early procedural stage, when attorneys address bail, court scheduling, evidence issues and the next steps before any trial.

The teen survived the shooting, and public reports did not list a final medical status. Authorities have not released his name. The complaint also does not say whether investigators recovered additional weapons from the home or whether alcohol testing was completed after Berg’s arrest. Those details may become part of later court filings if prosecutors and defense attorneys argue over evidence.

Currently, the case remains a felony prosecution built around a family argument, a reported threat and a shotgun blast through glass. Berg remains accused, not convicted, and the next milestone is in Crow Wing County District Court as the attempted murder case moves forward.

Author note: Last updated June 2, 2026.