Tremaine Dowdell of Norwich has been sentenced to 57 months in prison and three years of supervised release in connection with a 2019 shooting in New London.

Dowdell, 27, had pleaded guilty on July 2, 2020, to a federal firearm offense stemming from a 2019 assault and shooting in New London, according to the office of U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut John H. Durham. He was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton during a virtual court proceeding Wednesday.

According to court documents and statements, on Sept. 14, 2019, "Dowdell and three associates assaulted a man outside of the H&T Mart on Ocean Avenue in New London," a Wednesday news release from Durham's office read. "The H&T Mart was open and had customers coming in and out of the store."

Dowdell apparently beat, tried to rob and threw a trashcan at the assault victim. Surveillance video captured Dowdell removing a gun from his pants and firing a single shot toward the victim following the attack. The bullet missed the victim. When police arrived a short time later, officers found a .40 caliber cartridge casing at the location where Dowdell fired the gun.

Dowdell fled the scene with the other assailants. He avoided arrest for a month. On Oct. 3, 2019, a federal grand jury in New Haven returned an indictment charging Dowdell with one count of possession of ammunition by a convicted felon. Police found and arrested Dowdell at his relative's residence in Sprague on Nov. 5, 2019. He was in possession of a loaded .25 caliber handgun with an obliterated serial number and approximately 33 grams of cocaine, court records show.

Dowdell has been convicted on several state felony charges in recent years, including burglary, larceny and failure to appear in court. People convicted of felony offenses can't legally carry a gun or ammunition "that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce," the release notes.

Dowdell pleaded guilty to possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years. He has been detained since his arrest. New London police, the Bureau of Firearms, Alcohol, Tobacco and Explosives and the FBI carried out the investigation with the assistance of state police and Norwich police.

The court carried out the same sentencing recommended in a 16-page memorandum filed Jan. 21.

"Dowdell’s conduct the night of the shooting was shocking in its wantonness; in its disregard for community safety; and in its utter failure to evince any learning from a history of entanglement with the criminal justice system," the memorandum reads. "He and his accomplices opportunistically and savagely attacked a man before 11:00 pm on a Saturday night. They did so in an urban area just outside a convenient store in which customers — members of the community — were conducting business."

The memorandum states that Dowdell's conduct, at best, "demonstrated a reckless disregard for human life; perhaps more likely, it showed Dowdell's intent to cause the victim serious injury or death. Under either interpretation, only a sentence of significant length can truly reflect how close Dowdell came to causing life-altering, or life-ending, harm to the victim or to a bystander."

Day Staff Writer Taylor Hartz contributed to this report.

s.spinella@theday.com