One man accused of an ambush-style shooting in Derby has rejected plea deals offered by the state, while two others are still weighing their options.
The men — Stephen Cook, Daycus Bailey and Robert Smith — face attempted murder charges for the shooting, which happened in August 2009 at the intersection of Chapel and Elm streets.
On Friday, a Superior Court judge in Milford scheduled jury selection to be held on March 16 for their trial, slated for April.
Cook has rejected plea deals offered by the state prosecutors office, according to Senior Assistant States Attorney Charles Stango.
“Mr. Cook has currently turned down all offers,” Stango said Friday. “He wants a trial, and he’ll get one.”
It’s still not clear if Bailey and Smith will opt to go to trial. If they do, the three cases will be combined at one trial, tentatively scheduled to begin on April 26.
Smith’s attorney, Howard Gemeiner, declined to comment on the status conference held in Milford Friday, but said his client has neither accepted, nor rejected a plea deal from the state.
Bailey’s attorney was unable to be reached for comment Friday.
The Shooting
The three men are accused of crashing into a truck driven by Kierron “Koko” Stanley and then shooting Stanley several times. Click play on the video above to see one of the suspects detained the day of the shooting.
The incident happened in August 2009 at the intersection of Chapel and Elm streets, near Stanley’s job.
Police said the trio rammed Stanley’s GMC Yukon with their Crown Victoria as Stanley was leaving work.
They opened fire, according to police, “firing wildly” at Stanley, who managed to jump out of his SUV and run down Chapel.
Stanley survived the attack, despite being shot in the chin, upper torso, leg and buttocks. The shooters fled the scene.
Police had all three men in custody within 20 minutes. One officer, according to a search and seizure warrant, said he saw Bailey running from the scene.
The men were each charged with attempted murder, conspiracy at attempted murder, first-degree assault with serious injuries, and conspiracy to commit first-degree assault.
A motive for the shooting hasn’t been stated, but the Chapel Street shooting and a later shooting on Hawthorne Avenue were thought to be connected to earlier gun play on the streets of New Haven.
