Laurel homeowner says BB shots damaged house after flag display

A Laurel homeowner says repeated BB gun fire damaged his house after he hung an American flag outside to mark NASA’s Artemis II launch. Mark Hutchison, who has lived in the Laurel neighborhood for 25 years, said the two incidents left windows, doors, siding and other parts of the exterior riddled with damage and forced him to worry about his family’s safety. He believes the flag may have made the home a target, turning a small display into a serious neighborhood security problem.

Hutchison said he put the flag up in early April to celebrate Artemis II, which NASA said launched from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on April 1, 2026. He said the first round of shots came around 1 a.m. in April, and a second incident happened the following Saturday shortly after sunset. After that latest blast, he removed the flag because he thought it may have triggered the attacks.

The damage has not been cosmetic. Hutchison said he is facing thousands of dollars in repairs after the repeated strikes hit multiple parts of the house, including windows, doors and siding. He said he called Prince George’s County police both times, and officers responded. Because investigators did not recover a projectile, the incidents were treated as vandalism rather than a shooting, keeping the case centered on property damage and the search for a suspect or motive.

The uncertainty has only made the case feel more serious to Hutchison, who said he feels harassed in his own neighborhood. The reported blasts sent residents inside running for cover, and neighbors described the incidents as shameful. With Prince George’s County police serving nearly 900,000 residents and business owners through more than 1,500 officers and 300 civilians, even a single house in Laurel can become part of a wider public-safety concern when a homeowner believes someone may be using a BB gun to intimidate a family.