Injured Hotshots shooting suspect faces weapon charge

A man hospitalized with life-threatening injuries following a gunfight at Hotshots Bar and Grill in Cape Girardeau last March was booked into the county jail Monday, Jan. 8, on charges of being a felon in possession of a weapon.

Larry McIntyre played a central role in the gunfight that injured five people, including himself and four bystanders at Hotshots on March 4, according to court documents and previous news releases issued by the courts.

Judge Frank Miller issued a $50,000 cash-only bond. The charge is a Class D felony, which is eligible for a prison term not to exceed seven years.

If convicted, McIntyre could become the fourth and final subject to be sent to prison as a result of the shooting. One month following the shooting, a prosecutor said in court that it was unclear whether McIntyre would survive his injuries.

According to a probable-cause statement associated with McIntyre’s charges, surveillance footage showed McIntyre was involved in a physical altercation involving two other men during a skirmish at the establishment’s pool tables. After the fight, McIntyre took a gun from another man’s sweatshirt pocket, according to documents citing the surveillance. McIntyre then raised the gun, prompting a shootout inside the bar. McIntyre was shot multiple times as shots rang out.

McIntyre said he did not recall the shooting, according to the probable-cause statement signed by an officer whose name is redacted. McIntyre originally made false statements to investigators about not knowing the man who gave him the gun.

Jeremiah Twiggs was responsible for providing the gun to McIntyre, according to a previous probable-cause statement signed by officer Keith Green of Cape Girardeau Police Department.

Twiggs was sentenced to 84 months in federal prison in December following a guilty plea.

Officers processed the scene and discovered a .40-caliber handgun on the floor, along with 16 spent shell casings, according to a news release issued by the federal court in December. The news release stated Twiggs concealed the firearm inside his sweatshirt at McIntyre’s request before entering the bar.

Also charged in the incident were Tyler Banks and Ranell Robinson.

Robinson was sentenced in late November to seven years for unlawful possession of a firearm and two charges of second-degree assault. Banks, who hit McIntyre over the head with a glass bottle, was also sentenced to seven years for two counts of second-degree assault.

The shooting caused chaos inside the bar and grill, as customers scrambled to find exits or barricade themselves behind tables.

The restaurant’s liquor license was suspended for 10 days following a unanimous vote of the city’s liquor license review board. The city found the business was responsible for an employee’s failure to properly scan the alleged shooters for weapons prior to entry. That employee was terminated. The length of the liquor suspension was shortened following additional security measures implemented by Hotshots.