Accused Fashion Island shooter pleads not guilty

A man accused of firing more than 40 shots into the air outside of Fashion Island last month on Friday pleaded not guilty to 66 charges, according to a court official.

Marcos Gurrola, 42, of Garden Grove, faces charges of shooting at an occupied building, aggravated assault and sentencing enhancements for the use of a firearm in connection with a shooting outside the Macy’s building about 4:30 p.m. Dec. 15.

The Newport Beach shooting took place one day after a shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut killed 26 people.

In addition to charges tied to the December shooting, prosecutors said Gurrola faces 10 counts of negligent discharge of a firearm after he allegedly fired 10 shots, also at Fashion Island, a year prior, in November 2011.

Police connected him to the 2011 shooting while investigating the more recent crime, prosecutors said.

As Gurrola allegedly fired a Glock .40 semiautomatic handgun at the Newport shopping center in December, a mother and her 4-year-old daughter suffered minor injuries from panicked shoppers pushing them, according to the Orange County district attorney’s office.

Gurrola’s next court date is scheduled for March 15 in a Newport Beach courtroom.

— Lauren Williams

Twitter: @lawilliams30