Suspect in the “Walmart Parking Lot Shooting” Arraigned

Adrian Simental was arraigned on Monday, December 5, 2022, at the Queensbury Town Court. He is accused of firing a handgun at Brandon Grant, a 52-year-old New York City man. The incident is alleged to have occurred after an aggressive driving incident moments earlier on Route 9 in Queensbury: Police said Simental followed Grant into the Walmart parking lot, where a verbal and physical fight occurred. Simental allegedly then shot Grant in the abdomen. Grant was treated at both Glens Falls Hospital and Albany Medical Center, and has since been released.

Simental faces felony charges of attempted first-degree assault, and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon. 

According to NY Penal Law, first-degree assault is a criminal offense that involves intentionally or recklessly harming another person; assault in the first degree is the most serious type of assault you can commit. In order to be convicted of assault in the first degree, the prosecutor must show the following:

• That you injured someone using a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument, and you had intent to cause serious injury or,
• That you injured someone, and you had the intent to seriously and permanently disfigure or,
• That you seriously injured someone, and you did so in manner that showed you had depraved indifference to human life or,
• That you seriously injured someone while committing a felony

Felony assault is a Class B felony.

The maximum sentence for being convicted of assault in the first degree is up to 25 years in prison, and as it’s a violent felony offense, the minimum possible sentence is 5 years.

Simental also faces second degree criminal possession of a weapon; this is the most serious of the criminal possession charges. It is against the law to possess a loaded firearm in your vehicle without a license for it. It is also illegal to possess a disguised firearm with the intent to use it in an illegal manner. 

This is a class C felony, and could result in a prison sentence of up to 15 years, and since it’s also classified as a violent felony offense, the minimum possible sentence is 3 years. Probation is not an option, even if the offender has no prior criminal record. 

According to court documents, Simental said, “I’m a general laborer, but mostly now it’s gonna have to be construction. They are the only ones that take felons, right?”

His next court appearance will be January 3, 2023. He is being held at Warren County Jail, for lack of $200,000 cash bail or $600,000 bail bond.