Two accused in Pottstown fatal shooting make first appearances in county court
NORRISTOWN — A Philadelphia teenager entered not guilty pleas to homicide-related charges in connection with the alleged gunshot slaying of a man during what prosecutors alleged was a botched robbery attempt of another male in Pottstown.
Jahme Barnes, 17, of the 1000 block of West Cambria Street, making her first appearance in a Montgomery County courtroom, waived her formal arraignment hearing on Tuesday and entered the not guilty pleas to charges of second- and third-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, aggravated assault, robbery, possessing an instrument of crime, possession of a prohibited firearm and possession of a firearm by a minor in connection with the alleged 10 p.m. Aug. 28, 2022, shooting death of 25-year-old Dakari Rome and the shooting and wounding of a 17-year-old male, both from Pottstown.
Meanwhile, Kahseem Williams, 18, of the 1500 block of West Allegheny Avenue, Philadelphia, who faces identical charges for his alleged role in the attempted robbery and fatal shooting, saw his arraignment hearing postponed after he acknowledged his previous lawyer no longer represents him and he is in the process of hiring another lawyer.
“I’m going to get another lawyer,” Williams told Judge William R. Carpenter who rescheduled Williams’ arraignment hearing for Feb. 13.
After Williams’ arraignment is completed, the judge will set a trial date for Barnes and Williams.
Assistant District Attorney Gabrielle Hughes and co-prosecutor Robert Waeltz Jr. are prosecuting the case.
Defense lawyer Douglas B. Breidenbach Jr. represents Barnes.
A conviction of second-degree murder, which is a killing committed during the course of a felony such as robbery, carries a mandatory prison term of life imprisonment. A conviction of third-degree murder, which is a killing committed with malice, carries a possible maximum sentence of 20 to 40 years in prison.
Investigators relied on witness statements and video surveillance footage obtained from various cameras in the borough to identify the suspects and to uncover the alleged series of events that led up to the fatal shooting.
The investigation began about 10:06 p.m. Aug. 28 when Pottstown police responded to a call of shots fired in the area of the 100 block of Grant Street and arriving officers observed bloodstains and several fired cartridge casings on Grant Street at Union Alley, according to the criminal complaint filed by county Detective Mark Minzola and Pottstown Detective Michael Glauner.
A 911 caller reported seeing a dark in color SUV parked on Grant Street at Union Alley at the time the gunshots were heard.
Moments later, police were notified that two gunshot victims had been transported to Pottstown Hospital in separate private vehicles. Rome sustained a single gunshot wound to his chest and was pronounced dead by an emergency room doctor.
The investigation determined Rome had been transported to the hospital in his own dark in color SUV. Williams, who left the hospital prior to the arrival of police, left his name and cellphone number with hospital personnel after he assisted Rome into the emergency room, according to the criminal complaint.
The second victim, a 17-year-old male, sustained a single gunshot wound to his left hand and had been transported to the hospital by his mother, detectives said. He was treated for the wound and released.
The investigation determined Rome and the 17-year-old, who were friends, were “hanging out” with Williams and Barnes and an unidentified female in Rome’s Audi SUV, according to court papers. Barnes allegedly was driving the Audi with Rome in the front passenger seat, Williams in the rear passenger seat, and the 17-year-old boy in the rear middle seat.
The 17-year-old boy told detectives that when the group traveled to the area of Grant Street and Union Alley, Rome asked to see his gun and the teenager handed it to Rome, who then handed it to Williams, who passed it to Barnes, according to investigators.
Barnes allegedly waved the firearm around while videotaping herself before she pointed the gun at the 17-year-old boy and said, “what else you got?” according to court documents.
As the 17-year-old boy reached for the firearm, Barnes fired a round that struck him in the left hand, detectives alleged.
The fired projectile passed through the 17-year-old victim’s hand and then struck Rome in the chest, according to the arrest affidavit.
The 17-year-old victim then fled from the vehicle and ran into Union Alley toward his residence and as he fled he “heard additional shots and saw sparks coming from the ground in the area where he was running,” Minzola and Glauner alleged. Authorities alleged in court papers that once outside the vehicle Barnes handed the firearm to Williams, who fired several shots at the fleeing 17-year-old.
Detectives located four 9mm fired cartridge casings in the street at the intersection of Union Alley and Grant Street, according to court documents.
Detectives alleged Barnes and Williams then got back into the Audi SUV and drove the injured Rome to the hospital emergency room.
An autopsy determined Rome’s cause of death was a gunshot wound to the chest and the manner of death was ruled homicide.
The forensic pathologist who performed the autopsy noted that the bullet entrance was consistent with the bullet having traveled through “an intermediate surface prior to impacting Rome,” according to the criminal complaint. The bullet traveled through Rome’s lung, aorta and lodged in his spine “which would have immediately paralyzed the victim,” detectives wrote in court documents.
Rome’s mother called detectives on Aug. 29 and notified them that someone had returned her son’s vehicle and parked it on Rivendell Lane near her home. Detectives who processed the vehicle observed blood staining on the rear driver’s side seat and door as well as on the passenger side front seat. Detectives also recovered one 9mm fired cartridge casing between the driver’s seat and door, according to court papers.
The detectives’ observations of the recovered evidence located inside Rome’s Audi are consistent with the coroner’s findings that the fired projectile struck an “intermediate surface” prior to impacting Rome, according to the criminal complaint.
View more on Mainline Media News