Alleged Energy Park shooter held without bail

By CHRIS LARABEE

Staff Writer

Published: 07-19-2022 8:07 PM

GREENFIELD — A 19-year-old accused of a shooting in Energy Park last Thursday is being held without the right to bail following a dangerousness hearing in Greenfield District Court on Tuesday morning.

Gabe Adams appeared Tuesday before Judge John McKenna and was ordered held in pretrial detention for at least 120 days. Assistant District Attorney Ryan Scott presented a video allegedly showing Adams pulling a 9 mm handgun out of his waistband before discharging three rounds at Energy Park last Thursday at around 4 p.m.

One man, identified as Greenfield resident Robert Clough, 41, in court records and police reports, suffered minor injuries that Scott said resulted either from a fragment of the bullet ricocheting off the ground or a rock propelled by the gunfire. Clough refused treatment at the scene.

Adams is charged with assault with a dangerous weapon, assault and battery with a firearm, two counts of assault and battery attempt with a firearm, three counts of discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a building, carrying a loaded firearm without a license to carry, attempt to commit murder and disorderly conduct.

Scott argued that allowing Adams to return home, even on the “most stringent” restrictions, could endanger the community because he has shown his “willingness to use” a firearm at even the slightest provocation. Adams and Clough, he added, were “relative strangers” and Adams’ use of a firearm in proximity to several other people on the Energy Park stage put them at risk, too.

“They were all within the field of fire as Mr. Adams recklessly discharged his firearm,” Scott said. “Mr. Adams is a danger and no condition could ensure the safety of the community.”

Allison Pash, a court-appointed attorney for Adams, argued he should instead be put under the “viable alternative” of house arrest and a strict curfew, be ordered to wear a GPS monitoring bracelet and be placed on $10,000 bail because he has no criminal record. She added his “family is home” and he could even seek a remote job to work while undergoing legal proceedings.

“Mr. Adams is aware of what he’s facing today,” Pash said. “Mr. Adams has a goal ahead of him and that’s to stay on track.”

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Pash said the “tidbit” of a video clip shown in court, which showed a man pull a weapon from his waistband while talking to another man before discharging the firearm, was not strong evidence, especially with the lack of audio and the fact that Adams was found wearing different clothes when he was arrested. Scott said police investigating the scene found a backpack with clothes, which he argued was an attempt to “evade police” by changing what he was wearing.

“It’s unfortunate that we don’t have audio, we can’t hear what was said on that stage. That’s interesting to this case,” Pash said. “I don’t think for a second this is attempted murder.”

The shooting occurred in just a 30-second timeframe, according to Scott and a police report from Greenfield Police Officer Taylor Granger, who analyzed video captured by the Greenfield Information Technology Department’s cameras at the park.

Granger wrote that at 3:59 p.m., Adams allegedly raised the gun up to shoulder level and fired his first shot. Ten seconds later, Adams allegedly was talking to Clough and fired a second shot into the ground, then fired his third and final shot into the ground two seconds later, which Granger said kicked up debris as Clough recoiled and picked up his foot. After the shots were fired, Adams and three people accompanying him allegedly fled the scene by running down the park’s stairs toward Bank Row.

Adams was later located on Mill Street and was arrested by Officer Timothy Cooley, who brought Adams to the station for questioning while State Police and local police officers investigated Energy Park. The 9 mm handgun allegedly used in the shooting was found by police the next morning among leaves and sticks in a wooded area off Power Square.

Adams is due back in Greenfield District Court on Aug. 19.

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com or 413-930-40 81.

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