Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - A driver who engaged Buffalo police in a lengthy gunfight, striking and injuring three officers during a haphazard chase that spanned the city, pleaded not guilty Thursday to attempted murder.
Kente Bell, 28, was arraigned from his hospital room, where he is recovering from several gunshot wounds sustained during Tuesday's chase and a final hail of gunfire as it ended in front of a police station at a Buffalo intersection.
Bell allegedly shot the three officers with an illegal weapon that featured an extended magazine capable of firing more shots in one clip.
Erie County District Attorney John Flynn updated the case Thursday and said the incident began at the foot of Ferry Street when Bell was pulled over for a suspicious vehicle stop due to tinted windows. Shortly after, police allegedly found an issue with the vehicle's registration.
When asked to step out of the vehicle by police, Bell allegedly said he was unable to because he uses a walker after being partially paralyzed when he was shot during an incident back in 2012. Shortly thereafter, Bell fled the scene, where the chase commenced.
Early in the chase, before shots were fired, a passenger exited the moving vehicle.
“He was making a turn and had slowed down at some point. She opened the front passenger door and jumped out of the car while it was moving and ended up rolling on the ground and hit up against a pole of some kind,” he said, “like right out of a movie.”
“She was obviously freaking out probably, to say the least, and wanted to have nothing to do with this," Flynn said.
According to a detailed map displayed at Flynn's press briefing, Bell led Buffalo Police on a chase across the city, where he ended up as far East as Genesee Street toward Cheektowaga before tailing back West into the city.
The chase ended on the corner of Ferry and Filmore where the suspect was shot multiple times, including gunshot wounds to the arm, neck, leg and finger.
During the chase, multiple gunshots were fired by both Bell and Buffalo Police Officers, as all three officers that were struck by gunfire were located in three separate areas. Flynn said, though, it was "crystal clear" that Bell fired the first shot of this chase.
Flynn says it is unclear, at this time, just how many shots were fired during the chase. The investigation of the incident is still ongoing.
While two of the officers shot in the incident were treated and released from the hospital, Flynn says Joseph McCarthy, the third officer shot, is still hospitalized at ECMC, but is said to be "doing well". No update was given on when he will be released from the hospital. McCarthy was shot in the abdomen and needed surgery for his gunshot wound.
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As for Bell, he remains at ECMC and was last known to be in critical condition. He is scheduled to return to court for a felony hearing on Monday, April 4 at 9:30 a.m. ET. The defendant was remanded without bail.
Flynn also says Bell will have a probation hearing at ECMC on Friday relating to an firearm violation which he plead guilty for back in 2020.
If convicted of the charges, Bell faces a maximum 50 years-to-life in prison.