Fight breaks out in El Cajon court during sentencing for fatal 2021 shooting

The man accused of fatally shooting a man in El Cajon back in 2021 had to be pulled out of the courtroom during his sentencing Tuesday after he attempted to lunge at the victim's mother during her impact statement.

Fight breaks out in El Cajon court during sentencing for fatal 2021 shooting

EL CAJON, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) — The man accused of fatally shooting a man in El Cajon back in 2021 had to be pulled out of the courtroom during his sentencing Tuesday after he attempted to lunge at the victim's mother during her impact statement.

Chantell Tomakins, 39, approached the mother of Andre Carroll after the two got into a verbal argument over her statement on his death, which included details about how she opposed a plea deal he was negotiating at one point in the case and a number of personal insults.

Throughout the statement, Tomakins became visibly agitated, shifting in his chair as the victim's mother called him a "low-life" and a "psychopath."

However, when she began to speak about Tomakins' relationship with his late mother, he seemed to grow more unnerved, prompting him to say "Take my mother out [of] your mouth."

When the victim's mother responded with "I'll say what I want to say," Tomakins rose from his chair and began to approach her before he was pulled back by the bailiffs into a connected waiting room.

Other loved ones of Carroll then tried to climb over the partition between the spectator gallery and the counsel tables while yelling at Tomakins. They were held back by law enforcement, attorneys and other people at the sentencing before being escorted out of the courtroom.

Following the exchange, the judge overseeing the sentencing asked the victim's mother to avoid further comments on Tomakins' parents, to which she responded saying "I'm going to tell him what I have to say, because my son is dead because of him."

"I have not said anything for three years," she continued. "I have to say what I have to say as a mother."

Chantell Tomakins sits in an El Cajon court room for a sentencing on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024 during victim impact statements. Tomakins was accused of fatally shooting 30-year-old Andre Carrol in 2021. (FOX 5/KUSI)
Chantell Tomakins sits in an El Cajon court room for a sentencing on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024 during victim impact statements. Tomakins was accused of fatally shooting 30-year-old Andre Carroll in 2021. (FOX 5/KUSI)

Tomakins was arrested in August 2021 following the fatal shooting. According to law enforcement at the time, Carroll was found wounded in the 800 block of Sandalwood Drive. He was transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. He was 30 years old.

Witnesses to the incident told El Cajon police officers that the suspect, later identified as Tomakins, left the scene of the shooting in a box truck. He was located hours later by patrols in Mission Valley on westbound Interstate 8, near the Interstate 15 exchanges.

Once the Tuesday's sentencing was able to resume, Tomakins was eventually sentenced to over 75 years to life in prison without the possibility for parole.