App users, tap here to watch video report.
MAYVILLE – A Jamestown man charged in a 2019 fatal shooting in Chautauqua County plead guilty in the case, in what his attorney says was a “great deal” for his client.
Chautauqua County Public Defender Ned Barone tells WNY News Now his client Julio Montanez appeared in a county courtroom for a pre-trial hearing Monday, taking a plea deal with the Cattaraugus County District Attorney’s Office who was prosecuting the case.
Under the deal, Barone says Montanez plead guilty to criminally negligent homicide, a class E non-violent felony. Montanez was previously charged with second-degree murder and two counts of second-degree attempted murder in the death of 29-year-old Justin Gibbons.
Gibbons, a Mayville man, was allegedly shot and killed by Montanez following a dispute in an alleyway near 114 W. Main St. in Sherman just after 1:30 a.m., Oct. 6, 2019.
Gibbons was shot multiple times while he was attempting to flee the area in a vehicle, investigators said.
Montanez’s attorney says this plea was a “great deal” for his client, who could have faced life in prison if convicted on the murder charge.
Barone says his client could now be sentenced to one to four years intermediate, however Montanez has been booked behind bars for two years at the county jail, time that Barone says will be recognized during sentencing on Oct. 4.
Leave a Reply