PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The Reading man who shot and killed a 22-year-old Camden man outside of Pat’s King of Steaks in South Philadelphia in 2021 after an argument over a parking space has been sentenced to at least 3 1/2 years in prison. His girlfriend was also sentenced to two years of probation for striking the victim with an object before he was killed.
The family of David Padro Jr. wiped away tears at 38-year-old Paul Burkert’s sentencing hearing — many of them wearing t-shirts and buttons with pictures of Padro.
Burket apologized to the family and took full responsibility for killing Padro, saying “he didn’t deserve to die.”
But Burkert said he couldn’t breathe and thought Padro “was coming back for more” that night. It was around 1 a.m. on July 21, 2021, when the two men got into a fight over a parking spot at the iconic cheesesteak joint — a fight that escalated to the point of Burkert pulling a gun and firing a single shot at the Padro before jumping into a van and being driven away.
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Because of a prior conviction, it was illegal for Burkert to carry a gun at the time.
“That’s the problem with people having access to guns,” said Judge Charles Ehrlich before he sentenced Burkert to 3 1/2 to 10 years in prison for voluntary manslaughter, and three to six years for a gun violation, plus five years of probation and restitution for funeral expenses.
His girlfriend, Jamie Frick, 38, was sentenced to two years of probation for hitting Padro with a metal object before Burkert fatally shot him.
Burkert had been charged with first-degree murder, and Frick had been charged with third-degree murder. Both of those charges were dropped earlier this year in a deal with the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office. Burkert pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and a firearms charge, and Frick pleaded guilty to simple assault and reckless endangerment.
Padro’s mother, Enitza Martinez, told the court that her heart is broken, and it will ache forever.
“I miss my son, and I will never be the same,” Martinez said. “I have to go to therapy, and I still have all these panic attacks and anxiety.”
Andrew Mitnick, an attorney for Padro’s family, pointed to the lack of security at Pat’s and says they are looking to pursue a civil case in the coming weeks.
“If you know that there is a potential for violence at your restaurant because of the hours that you’re open, … you have a duty to get security out there to intervene. This is something that video shows happened over an extended period of time and was a perfect opportunity for security to intervene. Had security had been, there this wouldn’t have happened.”
KYW Newsradio reached out to Pat’s King of Steaks, but they would not comment.
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