ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — A Buncombe County man was sentenced Tuesday in Superior Court after pleading guilty to multiple felony charges stemming from a 2024 shooting incident that began with a dispute over a stolen dog.
Christopher Andrew Huntsinger, 52, pleaded guilty before Superior Court Judge Jacqueline Grant to felony discharging a firearm from an enclosure to incite fear, felony possession of a firearm by a felon, felony altering or removing a firearm’s serial number and felony possession of methamphetamine.
According to the Buncombe County District Attorney’s Office, Huntsinger received a sentence of 32 to 48 months in prison for discharging a firearm, and an additional 24 to 38 months for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. Those sentences will run consecutively. He was also given a consolidated sentence of 18 to 31 months for the remaining charges, which will also run consecutively, for a total active sentence of 74 to 117 months in the North Carolina prison system.
The charges stem from an incident on Aug. 6, 2024, when deputies with the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office responded to reports of gunfire on Odonald Road in the Candler community. Witnesses described a white male in a silver or white Subaru firing a weapon. Deputies recovered three .22-caliber shell casings and surveillance footage capturing the sound of gunfire and a matching vehicle in the area, according to the district attorney’s office.
The incident followed a dispute involving the alleged theft of a dog. Although the dog was returned and no charges were filed related to the theft, tensions escalated, leading to the shooting, the district attorney’s office said.
A subsequent investigation led authorities to Huntsinger’s residence, where they found a vehicle matching the description, a spent shell casing, a .22-caliber pistol with its serial number removed and suspected methamphetamine, according to the district attorney’s office. Testing by the State Crime Lab confirmed the substance was methamphetamine.
During questioning, Huntsinger admitted firing the gun “to make a point,” according to investigators. As a convicted felon, he was prohibited from possessing a firearm under North Carolina law.