A man from Cassville was charged on Tuesday after a couple says he threatened them with a rifle after a near-collision. Landon Long, 22, is charged with unlawful use of a weapon and endangering the welfare of a child.

It was a relief for the Miller family to be home safe and sound on Monday afternoon after another car almost sideswiped them on Missouri 37 in Barry County.

Marie Miller was behind the wheel and her son, Marc, was in the passenger seat.

"I laid on my horn and my son yelled for him to watch where he was going," Marie said in an interview on Monday at her home in rural Barry County.

All of a sudden, they said, the guy pulled out a rifle and pointed it at their car.

"As soon as we noticed the barrel sticking out, we took off to try to get away," said Marie.

Marc couldn't believe it was so close.

"It was literally right there. Like, I could almost reach out the window and grab it," he said. "And all I could think of was the baby in the backseat."

His 6-month-old daughter was strapped in her car seat in the back.

Marie stepped on on the gas pedal and called 9-1-1 before she pulled over near the Stage Stop convenience store. Shortly thereafter, deputies arrived and arrested Long, who had stopped not too far away.

According to the probable cause statement used as the basis of the charges against Long, deputies found a rifle in Long's car but it was not loaded. It was cocked, however, "as if ready to fire. Ammunition of the rifle was also located in the vehicle."

The family is furious that it happened at all, but they're also thankful because it could have ended worse.

"If he would have pulled the trigger, it could have been really bad tonight," Marc said. "It really could have."

A judge set Long's bond at $20,000. If he's convicted, he could face prison sentences up to seven years for child endangerment and up to four years for unlawful use of a weapon.