Man convicted in 2023 north Springfield head shop shooting

A Springfield man was sentenced to 12 years in prison Tuesday for a 2023 shooting at a north Springfield head shop.

Airreonte D. Turner, 24, pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful use of a firearm and armed criminal action at a hearing Nov. 5 in Greene County Judge Kaiti Greenwade's courtroom. According to online court records, Turner waived his right to a sentencing report and was sentenced at the hearing.

According to the probable cause statement, Springfield police were dispatched to Wicked Superstore at 425 E. Kearney St. in the early morning hours of December 14, 2023, in response to a firearms attack.

According to the report, Turner and another man were involved in a disturbance at the store where a handgun was displayed. The disturbance continued outside the store and gunfire occurred between Turner and the other man, identified in the report as V1.

Turner was shot in the shoulder and thigh and taken to the hospital.

Police reviewed surveillance footage from the store and observed Turner “harassing” someone and V1 intervened. Three other people can be seen in the footage trying unsuccessfully to calm Turner.

According to the report, Turner then approached V1 with a handgun and twice “aggressively” pressed the barrel of the gun against V1’s head in a “threatening manner.”

“It was only at this point that V1 removed a weapon from his front right pants pocket and placed it on his right thigh without ever displaying it in an aggressive manner,” the officer wrote in the report.

The fight moved outside, the officer wrote, and about a minute later gunshots were heard, along with a woman's voice screaming, “Airreonte…get in the damn car!”…Oh my God…Stop! Airreonte!”

The officer discovered that Turner was already a convicted felon and was prohibited from possessing a firearm. He was released on probation for a second-degree assault conviction. He is described in court documents as a “persistent offender.”

Turner is in the Greene County Jail awaiting transport to a Missouri Department of Corrections prison.