Maryland Priest Fined After Conn. Pistol Prank

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) -- A Maryland priest's prank with starter pistol lands him in a Connecticut court. 

The Rev. Daniel Lynch pleaded guilty Friday to disturbing the peace and was fined $90. 

Lynch was tackled by Bridgeport police in September after they surrounded the house where he was visiting, then rushed inside. Neighbors had reported that one man there was firing a handgun at another. 

It turned out the gun was only a starter pistol, which the 62-year-old Lynch had fired at a longtime friend as a joke. 

Lynch's lawyer, Robert Photos, said the friends were laughing about the prank when police burst in and took down Lynch as he yelled, "It's not a real gun!" 

Photos said Lynch, of Takoma Park, Md., was "sorry he created any inconvenience."