A New York man who opened fire with a high-powered rifle at a Buffalo-area retail store in 2017, injuring one person, pleaded guilty to one count of attempted murder Thursday and agreed to serve a 10-year sentence. from prison.
Travis Green, 34, of Buffalo, accepted the plea deal during a hearing in Erie County Court, District Attorney John Flynn said. Sentencing was set for July 6.
Police said it was a miracle more people weren’t injured or killed when Green fired more than 20 rounds into the front of the Dollar General store on Cheektowaga from the parking lot. Several customers and employees were inside at the time. A 53-year-old man outside the store was injured in the shoulder but survived.
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Green had walked into the store on Nov. 14, 2017 to apply for a job application and became enraged, authorities said. She left the store, pulled a pump-action rifle from her car, and began shooting.
The boarded up doors of this Dollar General store in Cheektowaga, New York, are shown on November 15, 2017, after being smashed by bullets from Travis Green the day before. (AP Photo/Carolyn Thompson, File)
A nearby store owner who saw the shooting jumped into his car, drove to the Dollar General and punched Green, who then tried to flee but was caught by police.
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Police said they later found a second rifle in Green’s car and more than 850 rounds of ammunition.
After the shooting, Green’s mother said stress seemed to be a factor because he recently broke up with his wife and lost his job. Green had been found incompetent to stand trial, but was later found competent when he received treatment.
Green’s attorney, Paul Dell, said Thursday that it has been difficult for his client to accept what he did.
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“He feels very lucky that no one was seriously injured,” Dell said. “This was not a hate crime or political in any way, it was the worst day of his life.”
The Buffalo News reported that Dell said Green would only have about three more years in prison to serve out a 10-year sentence because he has been incarcerated since the shooting and will get time off his sentence for good behavior.