Norwalk man gets two years for self-defense shooting

STAMFORD -- A Norwalk man who shot three men while trying to defend himself from local gang members in South Norwalk, and was subsequently picked up with a pistol while out on bond, was sentenced Tuesday to two years in jail.

Christopher Entzminger-Joyner, 22, of Taylor Avenue, pleaded guilty in November to illegal discharge of a firearm and carrying a pistol without a permit.

In November, Entzminger-Joyner's attorney Steven DeLeo said his client was being attacked by a gang of youths when he pulled out a gun and shot at the attackers.

His other attorney Mark Sherman said on Tuesday that Entzminger-Joyner has accepted responsibility and is looking forward to moving on with his life.

"This case was a situation of self-defense and the deal we made with the state reflects that," Sherman said.

DeLeo said his client's residence on Taylor Avenue is a crossroads for kids who live in public housing complexes in Norwalk like Roodner Court, Meadow Gardens and Washington Village.

"This family is in the middle of a war zone down there," said DeLeo, adding that numerous shootings have taken place there.

"Not all the kids are carrying guns to commit crimes. Some, like my client, are carrying them to protect themselves," he said at the November hearing.

The arrest came after a fight on a stairway between Taylor Avenue and Summit Avenue on Aug. 28, 2011. One of the gang members involved had been a suspect and a victim in several shootings in Norwalk around that time. Two were shot, along with Entzminger-Joyner's cousin, who was with him at the time of the incident.

Originally, Entzminger-Joyner had been charged with three counts each of first-degree assault and illegally firing a gun in the city, as well as one count of first-degree reckless endangerment.

Most of the charges, however, were dropped because Entzminger-Joyner had a compelling self-defense claim against the men he was scuffling with at the time that he fired the shots, Sherman said.

All three of the shooting victims survived. One was shot in the left leg and upper thigh, another was shot on his left side and the other was shot in the left arm.

Entzminger-Joyner had no criminal record before the incident and may have only served a one-year mandatory minimum prison sentence for illegal discharge of a weapon guilty if he was not spotted by Norwalk police in June while out on bail, driving while his license was under suspension.

When Entzminger-Joyner was arrested on the charge, police found him in possession of another gun.

Senior Assistant State's Attorney Joseph Valdes asked Judge Richard Comerford if Entzminger-Joyner could be allowed to serve his special parole out of state because he will be less likely to get involved in crime or be the victim of a crime if he is out of South Norwalk.