In this photo provided by the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office, Chandler Davenport is shown in a police booking photo on March 20, 2015, in Frederick, Md. Davenport was sentenced to a year in jail for setting up a gang confrontation at a Maryland high school that ended in gunfire that wounded two teenage boys. (Frederick County Sheriff’s Office via AP)
A man who provoked a confrontation that ended in gunfire and bloodshed at a Maryland high school was sentenced Thursday to a year in jail after apologizing for his actions.
Chandler Davenport, 20, went into the Frederick High School gymnasium during a junior varsity basketball game last February and made eye contact with what prosecutors said were rival gang members, although Davenport denies being in a gang.
As they headed outside, followed by Davenport, prosecutors say Davenport’s friend Brandon Tyler fired seven shots, wounding a 14-year-old boy in the back and a 15-year-old boy in the leg.
The gunfire sent spectators running for cover as frantic parents rushed to the scene. About 200 players, faculty, staff and fans took shelter in the school cafeteria, where police questioned witnesses for several hours.
Davenport pleaded guilty in August to reckless endangerment of two school employees. In return for his cooperation, prosecutors dropped 11 other charges and recommended the one-year jail sentence. Frederick County Circuit Judge G. Edward Dwyer suspended nine years of prison time and agreed to let Davenport serve a three-year probationary period in Louisiana, where he has family, after his release.
Dwyer said both Davenport and Tyler are lucky nobody was killed.
Davenport told the court he’s come to appreciate the consequences of his actions.
“I apologize for everything,” he said. “I’m ready to put this behind me to move forward in life.”
Davenport told investigators he knew that Tyler, 22, carried a gun but didn’t know he planned to use it when they and some friends drove to the school on the night of Feb. 4.
Prosecutors say Davenport agreed to testify against Tyler but his testimony won’t be needed since Tyler pleaded guilty last month to two counts of first-degree assault and was sentenced to 12 years.
