A 25-year-old Omaha man is facing felony charges after police say he opened fire on another man's car near 120th and Burt Streets while a child sat inside — and then stashed the gun used in the shooting inside his own infant's diaper bag. Colin Matthews was booked into Douglas County Corrections on three counts of first-degree assault, discharging a firearm at a motor vehicle, and felony child abuse following the shooting Wednesday night.
According to a police report cited by WOWT, Omaha officers were dispatched to 120th and Burt Streets after a shots-fired call. The intersection sits in a busy West Omaha commercial and residential corridor just north of West Dodge Road, near major retail centers including Costco and Menards, according to Commercial Search.
Investigators say the victim first spotted a white Nissan Rogue carrying the mother of his child and her boyfriend, later identified as Matthews. The two men crossed paths again after the victim left the area, and police say Matthews got out of the Rogue and fired multiple rounds at the victim's vehicle. The victim told police he returned fire in self-defense after being shot at. A bullet strike was found near the seat occupied by the victim's child, and a separate bullet defect was discovered in the door frame of Matthews' vehicle near where his own infant had been seated.
Conflicting Accounts Before the Recantation
Matthews and the woman in his car initially told police that the victim had chased them and fired first, per the same police report. Both later recanted that account. The woman then said Matthews shot first and knew the victim's child was inside the other vehicle, while Matthews himself admitted to investigators that he fired first during the confrontation. Investigators ultimately recovered the firearm used in the shooting from inside Matthews' infant's diaper bag. Police took Matthews and the woman into custody without incident.
What Nebraska's Self-Defense Law Requires
Matthews' admitted role in firing first, paired with the recovered weapon and the recanted statements, cuts against any self-defense claim under Nebraska law. Nebraska Revised Statute § 28-1409 requires people outside their home or workplace to retreat if they can do so safely before resorting to deadly force, meaning the state does not follow a Stand Your Ground model but instead a duty-to-retreat standard in public spaces, according to the Nebraska Legislature and Giffords Law Center.
Penalties for Assault and Child Abuse Charges
First-degree assault is a Class II felony punishable by 1 to 50 years in prison under state law. Felony child abuse, meanwhile, ranges from a Class IIIA felony with up to 3 years when committed knowingly without serious injury up to a Class II felony punishable by 1 to 50 years if serious bodily injury results, according to Liberty Law Group.
The consecutive-sentencing rule applies to the distinct offense of using a firearm to commit a felony, not Matthews' charge of discharging a firearm at a motor vehicle. Matthews was scheduled to appear in court Friday.
Part of a Pattern of Vehicle Shootings
The case echoes another recent Omaha shooting Hoodline reported near 24th and Leavenworth Streets, where two 22-year-old men were arrested in late September and charged with first-degree assault and discharging a firearm from a vehicle after a shooting critically injured a 35-year-old victim. The cases share an assault charge and a firearm-discharge charge in broad terms, but the charges differ: Hoodline described discharging a firearm from a vehicle, while Matthews is charged with discharging a firearm at a motor vehicle.
The shooting also comes amid a broader decline in Omaha violence. Citywide crime statistics released by the Omaha Police Department show overall crime fell 10% in 2025 compared to 2024 and dropped another 14% in early 2026, marking historic lows for the city. Omaha recorded 50 aggravated assaults in the first quarter, down from 65 in the same period a year earlier.
