MAN CONVICTED IN SHOOTING WHERE HE SAID THE RIFLE ACCIDENTLY FIRED WITHOUT HIS PULLING THE TRIGGER IS RELEASED - "60 MINUTES" SUNDAY

Zac Stringer, right, greets his father, Roger, after his early release last October.

The Remington 700 Rifle at Issue Is under Recall

A young man from Enon, Miss., was released early from a 10-year prison sentence he was serving for the shooting death of his little brother. 60 MINUTES reports this Sunday that Zac Stringer, who was 15 when he shot his brother, has been insisting for years that the rifle went off without his finger on the trigger. Stringer, now 20, was granted a good behavior release while 60 MINUTES was investigating the Remington 700 rifle used in the shooting. The gun has a trigger mechanism called the X Mark Pro that has since been recalled by the company because it can inadvertently discharge. Remington has received hundreds of complaints that rifles with this trigger produced between 2006 and April 2014 have fired without the trigger pulled. This information was not public during Stringer's trial.

Lesley Stahl's report includes Stringer's father, Roger, who had testified against his son during his trial but now believes he's innocent. It will be broadcast on 60 MINUTES Sunday, Feb. 19 (7:00-8:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

An excerpt of the report appears below. Please credit 60 MINUTES. Watch the excerpt.

THAT RIFLE IS STILL BEING HELD AT THE LOCAL COURT HOUSE. A STATE FORENSIC EXPERT DID TEST IT BEFORE THE TRIAL, BUT HAL KITTRELL, THE PROSECUTOR IN THE CASE, SAYS HE DIDN'T KNOW THERE HAD BEEN OTHER INSTANCES OF THE GUN GOING OFF BY ITSELF.

STAHL: If you had known about this issue with the gun, the trigger problem, would you have gone ahead with the trial, would things have gone differently?

KITTRELL: I say this, Lesley, I mean, had we known that there was a problem with the trigger before we were getting ready for trial, I can assure you we would've looked into that. We would've assessed this case based on that evidence, there's no question about that.

SHORTLY AFTER WE APPROACHED THE PRISON TO INTERVIEW ZAC, ROGER UNEXPECTEDLY GOT WORD THAT AFTER 5 YEARS BEHIND BARS, HIS SON WOULD BE RELEASED FOR GOOD BEHAVIOR. ROGER NOW BELIEVES HIS SON IS INNOCENT AND SAYS HE WILL SOON ASK THE MISSSISSIPI SUPREME COURT TO RECONSIDER ZAC'S CONVICTION. HE'S ALSO WRITTEN TO THE JUDGE IN THE CLASS-ACTION CASE ASKING HIM TO HOLD REMINGTON'S FEET TO THE FIRE.

STAHL: What would you like to see Remington do now?

ROGER: Eliminate the danger that is lurking in so many households.

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