NORTHAMPTON — A Northampton man who fired an automatic weapon into his neighbors’ home last year, claiming that his dog told him to do it, was sentenced to three to five years in state prison on Tuesday after he pleaded guilty to 11 charges related to the incident.

Joshua Martinelli, 30, pleaded guilty in Hampshire Superior Court to four counts of armed assault with intent to murder; unlawful possession of a large-capacity rifle; unlawful possession of a feeding device for large capacity rifle; unlawful possession of ammunition without a license; discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a building; unlawful possession of a large-capacity rifle; improper storage of a large capacity rifle and malicious destruction of property over $1,200.

The charges are related to the Dec. 7, 2023, assault on Wright Avenue in Northampton, where Martinelli lived in a two-family home from which he fired rounds into the adjoining unit. Four people present in that unit took cover, fearing for their own and their cats’ lives, according to a Tuesday statement from the Northwestern district attorney’s office. None of the people were injured, although one of the adults later found a bullet hole that had gone through his pants without touching him.

When police arrived at the scene, they detained Martinelli and asked who he was shooting at. Martinelli said the neighbors were trying to poison his dog. After being transported for booking, Martinelli told investigators his dog had told him to kill the neighbors, the police report states. The dog had been with Martinelli at the time of the shooting.

During a detention hearing shortly after the incident, a forensic psychologist testified that Martinelli demonstrated a factual understanding of the case, but that he also expressed delusional beliefs that impacted his rational decision-making. Martinelli was sent to the Worcester Recovery Center for six months before eventually being transferred to prison.

Martinelli had been deemed incompetent to stand trial for 10 months, only becoming competent for trial last month.

As part of an agreed-upon change of plea recommendation, the commonwealth dropped the charges of possession of a firearm without a license and cruelty to animals. No animals were hurt in the incident.

The sentencing agreement includes five years on probation following his sentence, with conditions that he must stay away from the victims, engage in mental health treatment and take his prescribed psychiatric medication, refrain from using illegal substances and submit to random drug screens. He is also prohibited from possessing any weapons.

Northwestern Assistant District Attorney Andrew Covington stated in court that the sentence recommendation takes into account Martinelli’s severe mental health condition and the safety of the public. He noted that a forensic examiner who evaluated Martinelli stated that because of his mental health condition, there were questions about whether he could be held criminally responsible for the crimes committed that day.

Covington also read from statements written by two of the victims in the case, both of whom said they still suffer from panic attacks and other symptoms such as severe sensitivity to loud noises from the trauma they experienced.

“I am emotionally scarred by Joshua’s actions,” said one victim in her statement.

Defense Attorney Thomas Glynn said the defense and commonwealth came up with the jointly recommended disposition of the case, saying “We feel this is a just and fair resolution given all the circumstances.”

Alexander MacDougall can be reached at amacdougall@gazettenet.com.