Defense lawyer for alleged Stop & Shop gunman says he won't use psychiatric defense

The defense attorney for the alleged gunman in the 2021 deadly shooting at a West Hempstead Stop & Shop told a judge Wednesday he is abandoning plans to use a psychiatric defense at his client's upcoming trial because it would permit prosecutors to present "devastating" facts about the accused shooter's prior criminal record. 

Gabriel Wilson, 33, a former cart collector who has pleaded not guilty to a nine-count indictment including murder, attempted murder, assault and weapon charges in the April 20, 2021 mass shooting, is set to go on trial later this month. 

Wilson's attorney, Brian Carmody, had previously indicated he would argue that his client, who was shot in the head at 19 and lost more than a third of his brain, was suffering an extreme emotional disturbance during the shooting after store management failed to act on a request from Wilson for a job transfer.

But Carmody told Acting State Supreme Court Justice Helene Gugerty in Nassau County Court he would no longer pursue that defense because it would "open the door" for the jury to hear "devastating" information about his client, who repeatedly disrupted Wednesday's proceeding with verbal outbursts. 

"I ain't never get my discovery," said a handcuffed Wilson. "I ain't going to trial … They ain't never give me my discovery. I ain't with it." 

At another point, Wilson, seated next to Carmody at the defense table, said of his attorney: "He's fired! He's fired! He violated my constitutional rights." 

Wilson's outbursts prompted the judge to repeatedly warn the defendant he would be removed from the courtroom if he continued. 

Carmody told the judge Wilson has refused visitation the last few times he attempted to visit his client in jail. 

Under an extreme emotional disturbance defense, lawyers would contend that, during the shooting, Wilson snapped, acting while experiencing a "profound loss of self-control" that was "reasonable" from his viewpoint. If found guilty under that defense, Wilson would be convicted on the lesser charge of manslaughter. Carmody declined to comment about a possible alternate defense after court Wednesday.

The judge didn't permit prosecutor Jared Rosenblatt to disclose Wilson's criminal record in court Wednesday, but Newsday has previously reported that in July 2016, Baltimore police arrested Wilson for allegedly possessing a loaded handgun, a case that was later dropped. 

Nassau police have said Wilson suffered a gunshot wound in a Baltimore gun battle in April 2014. Maryland court records show authorities closed that case without going forward with Wilson's prosecution on attempted murder, assault and gun charges.

Authorities have alleged Wilson used a .380-caliber semiautomatic handgun to shoot at five of his Stop & Shop co-workers, killing manager Ray Wishropp, 49, of Valley Stream, and wounding a 26-year-old Bay Shore woman and a 50-year-old Bethpage man. Wishropp was a divorced father of seven and a new grandfather who had worked for the supermarket chain for about three decades, Newsday previously reported.

Authorities said two 47-year-old female employees also were present when Wilson allegedly opened fire but they were able to escape harm.

Police said they recovered seven shell casings, but not the weapon, after Wilson fled from the store.

Police arrested Wilson about four hours later, after law enforcement found him at a Hempstead apartment building after receiving surveillance video and tips that flooded in from the public when authorities named him as a person of interest in the case.

Wilson told police ‘Go ahead, shoot me,’ " then cursed and told them to shoot again, a Hempstead police detective testified during a pretrial hearing in the case.

Jury selection for Wilson's trial is set to start April 18. 

By Nicole Fuller

nicole.fuller@newsday.com@NicoleFuller

Nicole Fuller is Newsday's senior criminal justice reporter. She began working at Newsday in 2012 and previously covered local government.