MAYS LANDING — An Atlantic City man has been sentenced to four years in state prison for his role in a 2023 shooting that left two men wounded and sent bullets into parked vehicles, including one occupied by a woman and her 2-year-old child.
Christopher Davis, 38, was sentenced Tuesday by Superior Court Judge Donna Taylor after previously pleading guilty to second-degree conspiracy to commit aggravated assault and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, according to the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office.
Davis must serve 85% of his four-year sentence before becoming eligible for parole under New Jersey's No Early Release Act. He will also be subject to three years of parole supervision following his release.
The charges stem from a Sept. 5, 2023, shooting on South Florida Avenue in Atlantic City.
Atlantic City police responding to the shooting found two men suffering from gunshot wounds to their legs.
Investigators also found a woman and her 2-year-old child inside a parked vehicle that had been struck by gunfire.
According to prosecutors, a bullet struck the rear passenger-side door where the child was strapped into a car seat.
Neither the woman nor child was reported injured in the release.
Several other parked vehicles were also struck.
The crime scene stretched along the entire unit south block of Florida Avenue, where investigators recovered approximately 27 spent shell casings, prosecutors said.
Surveillance Video Traces Shooting
Investigators reviewing surveillance video determined that a 2022 Nissan Altima with Missouri registration had circled the block several times before the shooting, according to the Prosecutor's Office.
Three men were standing outside 30 S. Florida Ave. when the Nissan parked on nearby Bellevue Avenue.
Prosecutors said the front-seat passenger, dressed in dark clothing and wearing a black mask, got out while the driver remained nearby.
The passenger then appeared to creep around the side of the building before raising his arm and opening fire, according to investigators.
After the shooting, the passenger returned to the Nissan.
One of the men who had been standing outside then fired a gun multiple times down Florida Avenue, prosecutors said.
The Nissan sped from the area and nearly struck a father and child who were walking in the street. According to prosecutors, the father pulled the child out of the vehicle's path.
Phone Data Linked Davis to Area, Prosecutors Say
Six days later, on Sept. 11, 2023, police located the Nissan on Indiana Avenue.
Davis was driving.
He told investigators that his girlfriend had rented the vehicle and that he had been driving it for approximately two weeks, according to the Prosecutor's Office.
Police obtained a search warrant for the Nissan and seized Davis' cellphone from inside.
Investigators subsequently obtained location data from the phone that placed it in the area of the shooting at the time it occurred, prosecutors said.
The phone then left the area following the gunfire in a manner investigators said was consistent with the surveillance footage.
The case was investigated by the Atlantic City Police Department's Violent Crimes Unit with assistance from the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office Major Crimes Unit.
Shank Found in Jail
Davis also picked up another criminal charge while being held in the Atlantic County Justice Facility in connection with the shooting case.
On Jan. 30, 2024, authorities found Davis in possession of a shank inside the jail, according to prosecutors.
He received a concurrent three-year state prison sentence in that case, meaning it will be served at the same time as his four-year sentence.
The Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office Gangs, Guns and Narcotics Unit represented the state in both cases.
