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Queens Man Pleads Guilty to Weapons Charge, Faces Four Years After 2023 Fatal Shooting

Prosecutors declined homicide charges after accepting his self-defense claim.

Overview

  • Charles Foehner, 67, admitted to second-degree criminal possession of a weapon in Queens Supreme Court in a deal calling for a four-year prison term.
  • Sentencing is set for Jan. 14, 2026, and Judge Toni Cimino ruled he can remain at liberty until then over the district attorney’s objection.
  • The case stems from a May 31, 2023 encounter in Kew Gardens in which Foehner shot Cody Gonzalez during an attempted robbery; the object Gonzalez waved was later identified as a pen.
  • Police found Foehner’s revolver was unlicensed and discovered additional unlicensed firearms in his home, leading to a 25-count weapons indictment and significant potential trial exposure.
  • Defense attorney Thomas Kenniff said his client accepted the plea to avoid a far longer sentence and criticized New York’s gun-permitting laws.