College Student Went to Wrong House. Officer Now Charged

By Taylor Bennett. Sep 3, 2026

A Wrong Turn Ended With a Fatal Police Encounter

Glenwood “Bubba” Pysher IV was trying to find his friends when he ended up at the wrong house late at night. More than a week after the 22-year-old college student was fatally shot there, the police corporal who fired at him has been charged with voluntary manslaughter.

Montgomery County prosecutors announced the charge against Upper Pottsgrove Police Cpl. Sean Farrell, 58, on Sept. 1. Farrell turned himself in the same day, and a judge set bail at $75,000. He has not been convicted, and the charge will now move through court.

Investigators Reconstructed the Wrong-House Mistake

According to prosecutors and reporting from People and the Associated Press, Pysher had been out with friends on Aug. 22 and later tried to walk to another friend’s house. He mistakenly went to a different home, where a resident called 911 about a possible attempted break-in.

Farrell was the first officer to arrive shortly after midnight. Prosecutors said body-camera video showed Pysher standing on a patio near the rear of the house. The district attorney’s office said Pysher was unarmed.

Body Camera Became Central to the Case

The body-camera recording became the central piece of evidence in the charging decision. Prosecutors said Farrell ordered Pysher to show his hands and get on the ground. Pysher raised his hands and began walking toward the officer.

The district attorney’s office said Farrell fired while Pysher was still several yards away. Investigators said no weapon was recovered and that Farrell had less-lethal options available, including a Taser. District Attorney Kevin Steele said the office concluded the shooting was not a lawful use of deadly force.

A Family Lost a Son Over a Simple Mistake

Pysher’s father told People that his son had been moving between friends’ homes after a night out and simply went to the wrong address. That ordinary mistake became the defining fact of the case.

The 22-year-old was remembered by relatives and friends as a young man whose night with friends should have ended very differently. His death has now shifted from an officer-involved shooting investigation into a criminal prosecution of the officer who fired.

The Case Moves to Court

Farrell is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Sept. 10. The voluntary manslaughter charge does not determine guilt, and prosecutors will have to prove their case in court.

For Pysher’s family, the legal process begins with a fact that remains painfully simple: he was looking for his friends, walked to the wrong house, and never made it home.

References: Police Officer Charged in Fatal Shooting of Penn College Student Who Mistakenly Went to Wrong House | Pennsylvania police officer charged with voluntary manslaughter in killing of college student