Ayer Man Held Without Bail For Allegedly Opening Fire On An Apartment

WOBURN – Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan has announced that Treyvon Choate, 23, of Ayer, was arraigned yesterday in Ayer District Court on charges of discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a dwelling, trafficking over 36 grams of cocaine, four counts of possession of a large capacity firearm, possession of a firearm with a defaced serial number, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon on a person over the age of 60, possession of a firearm without a license, two counts of improper storage of a large capacity firearm, improper storage of a firearm, and disturbing the peace.

Judge J. Elizabeth Cremens ordered the defendant held without bail pending a 58Adangerousness hearing scheduled for Monday, March 7.

On March 2, at approximately 12:00 a.m., Ayer Police responded to a report of gunshots in an apartment complex on Harvard Road in Ayer. Upon arrival authorities were advised to check in on a 70-year-old woman who had sustained a gunshot wound to her foot. Inside the victim’s bedroom police found bullet holes in the walls, floor, mirror, and bureau drawer. Police learned that other witnesses present had fled into the victim’s bathroom into the tub for cover upon witnesses hearing bullets come through the wall.

Authorities determined that the alleged shooter was Treyvon Choate. After taking the defendant into custody, a search warrant on the defendant’s apartment allegedly yielded five improperly stored firearms for which the defendant did not have a license.   Choate is also allegedly wanted by the Probation Department for cutting off his GPS monitoring bracelet from an unconnected offense shortly before police arrived.

“The defendant in this case allegedly indiscriminately opened fire on a home,” said District Attorney Ryan. “We have seen an increase in the number of incidents where firearms are discharged into homes, particularly in densely-populated areas. This is a dangerous state-wide trend that exemplifies the need for legislation to directly address these types of incidents.”

District Attorney Ryan has been instrumental in drafting H. 1497, “An Act to Prohibit Gunfire Directed at Dwelling Houses”. The bill gives the Commonwealth the ability to charge a defendant with a more precise charge for intentionally discharging a firearm at a dwelling and would impose a penalty proportionate to the crime. While the Commonwealth currently has a statute in effect to criminalize discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a dwelling, the offense is punishable by only a fine and/or a maximum of 3 months in jail. Under the proposed legislation defendants found guilty of discharging a firearm into a dwelling who have previous convictions for violent felonies would receive a sentence of no less than 10 years in state prison.

The lead sponsor of this bill is State Representative Randy Mom. Co-sponsors of the proposed bill include Representatives James Arciero, David Nangle, and Thomas Golden. The bill has been referred to the Joint Committee on the Judiciary.

Officers from Littleton, Shirley, and the Massachusetts State Police assisted the AyerPolice Department in this investigation.

These charges are allegations and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

The prosecutor assigned to this case is Assistant District Attorney Lisa Fuccione.