A man admitted in a 海角社区官网court Tuesday that he pointed a pistol out the window of a vehicle before he was shot in the hail of bullets that killed 12-year-old Dante Andreatta, out walking with his mom on a nearby sidewalk.
Deshaun Daley, now 22, was 17 on the afternoon of Nov. 7, 2020, when he and four other teenagers were sitting in a Honda Accord 鈥渃hilling and smoking weed鈥 in the parking lot of an apartment complex at 25 Stong Crt., near Jane Street.
He testified he saw another vehicle, also a Honda Accord, drive into the lot with occupants wearing COVID masks. They gestured to see if 鈥渨e were leaving the parking lot,鈥 and Daley, sitting in the front passenger seat, indicated they weren鈥檛 going anywhere. The other Honda left the immediate area.
But then, Daley said, he noticed a man walking toward their vehicle with a 鈥渂ulge in his sweater.鈥 That was when he decided to take the pistol out from his waist 鈥 partly because he was high and 鈥減aranoid,鈥 but also due to the 鈥渁rea we鈥檙e in.鈥
Daley said he pointed his Glock 26 handgun out the window, 鈥渢hinking I could scare them off. That鈥檚 when all hell broke loose.鈥 Daley said he then ducked for cover and closed the window as the car sped off.
He was testifying in Superior Court at the trial of Rashawn Chambers, Jahwayne Smart and Cjay Hobbs, who have all pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and five counts of attempted murder.聽
The jury has heard two individuals 鈥 Chambers admits he was one of them 鈥 shot into the Honda filled with the teenagers, injuring three of them. Thirty-six rounds were discharged 鈥 18 each 鈥 and one stray bullet travelled across Jane Street and struck Andreatta on the sidewalk with his mom; he died a few days later in hospital.
Rashawn Chambers, Jahwayne Smart and Cjay Hobbs have pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder
Hobbs has admitted he was driving that day. Smart and Chambers were arrested at a downtown Canadian Tire two days later with the loaded firearms that were used in the Stong Court shooting.
Andreatta鈥檚 name has rarely been mentioned in this week-old trial. On Tuesday, his grandmother, carrying his photograph, and aunt, sat in the body of the court.
As the teens sped away from the shooting scene, Daley said he was 鈥減issed and angry鈥 and didn鈥檛 immediately realize he鈥檇 been shot four times, twice in his left shoulder and twice in his legs. Another passenger who was sitting in the back seat was shot in the knee. Two female passengers were not hit with gunfire.
The driver of the vehicle, Jonathan Adamski, was hit in the right forearm.
They drove north on Driftwood Avenue and ended up at a strip mall. Daley testified he was feeling 鈥渄izzy鈥 and thought he was going to pass out, so he gave the gun to Adamski and 鈥渢old him to get rid of it.鈥
鈥淗e called me the next day to say he put it in a dumpster.鈥
Adamski has since died of an overdose.
Daley is currently serving a jail sentence after being convicted of possession of an illegal firearm. He also has numerous convictions for break-and-enter charges and disobeying court orders.聽
Crown attorney Patrick Clement asked Daley if he had any idea who the shooters were or why they opened fire. He said he didn鈥檛.
鈥淒o you know if anyone else in the car would have been a target,鈥 Clement asked.
鈥淣ot that I know of.鈥
The trial continues.
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