‘Feud’ between groups linked to shooting

NORRISTOWN » The August 2017 shooting and wounding of a man in Norristown is tied to a violent “feud” between rival groups from Pottstown and Norristown – the same feud previously linked to the July 2017 murder of a Pottstown teenager, prosecutors alleged in court papers.

“It is alleged by the commonwealth that this shooting was motivated by a feud between individuals from Pottstown who sometimes refer to themselves as ‘ATM or ‘BGB’ and individuals from Norristown,” Montgomery County Assistant District Attorney Kristen J. Kemp wrote in court papers, referring to the 11:07 p.m. Aug. 8, 2017, shooting of 26-year-old Kendal Rosendary in the 800 block of Cherry Street in Norristown.

Kemp asked a judge to allow prosecutors to present evidence of the ongoing feud to a jury during the joint trial of Jahleel Davis, 19, of Pottstown, and Philadelphia residents Jamal Achilles Jones, 20, and Taron Malik Ebo-Wilson, 20, who are charged with attempted murder in connection with Rosendary’s shooting.

Rosendary, of Philadelphia, was shot about 15 times and was treated for life-threatening injuries but survived the assault, according to court papers.

“The evidence of this ongoing dispute is relevant for proving the defendants’ shared motive and conspiracy to shoot someone in Norristown, and that it was not a random or chance encounter between strangers,” Kemp wrote in court papers.

“Although the victim in this case is not tied to the particular Norristown group against whom the defendants were allegedly retaliating, the victim’s presence in Norristown made him the nearly fatal and unlucky target of the ongoing feud,” Kemp added.

Judge Richard P. Haaz, who has set Oct. 26 as the trial date for Davis, Jones and Ebo-Wilson, will hold a hearing on Kemp’s request later this year. Defense lawyers Christopher Koschier, who represents Davis, Francis Genovese, who represents Jones, and Anthony Gallo, who represents Ebo-Wilson, will have a chance to respond to Kemp’s request at that time.

In court papers, prosecutors alleged that in the weeks prior to Rosendary’s shooting, there were multiple other shootings between members of the rival groups.

“The commonwealth alleges that the defendants went to Norristown to shoot people as part of this feud,” Kemp alleged.

The same feud, prosecutors alleged, was linked to the 6:30 p.m. July 6, 2017, gunshot slaying of Jordan Scott, 16, of Pottstown, and the wounding of a second teenager, Taye Wynder, who had been walking with Scott, at Chain Street and Blackberry Alley in Norristown.

During a jury trial in April, Isaiah “Zay” Freeman, 19, of Norristown, was convicted of first-degree murder as the triggerman in Scott’s slaying. Freeman is serving a sentence of life imprisonment. Freeman was 18 at the time of the killing.

William Durell Wilson, 31, also of Norristown, who prosecutors said supplied the gun to Freeman and was the getaway driver during Scott’s slaying, was convicted of third-degree murder and faces sentencing later this year.

Hinting at a motive for Scott’s killing, prosecutors claimed at trial that Wilson and Freeman were a part of the same group of friends from Norristown that were feuding with Scott and others associated from Pottstown over several days leading up to Scott’s slaying.

The investigation into the alleged roles of Davis, Jones and Ebo-Wilson in Rosendary’s shooting began when Norristown police received a 911 call at 11:07 p.m. Aug. 8 regarding two groups of males causing a disturbance in the street and threatening to fight.

Upon arrival, a responding officer heard gunshots in the area of the 800 block of Cherry Street. Detectives subsequently recovered 21 fired 9 mm, .40-caliber and .45-caliber shell casings in the area.

Immediately after gunfire erupted, a gray Chevrolet Impala pulled out into the 800 block of Cherry Street and began traveling north toward West Elm Street. Police used a patrol vehicle to block the car’s path and Davis, Jones and Ebo-Wilson jumped out and fled on foot, ignoring officers’ commands to stop, according to the criminal complaint filed by county Detective Gregory Henry and Norristown Detective David Mazza.

Police checked the vehicle and recovered a black revolver in the back seat and a Glock pistol magazine in the passenger’s side door compartment.

Police subsequently found Ebo-Wilson and Jones hiding under a porch in the rear of a home in the 800 block of Swede Street, along with a .40-caliber Glock handgun, according to the criminal complaint. A later search also uncovered a .45-caliber handgun in the area of where the two men were hiding, according to the arrest affidavit.

An officer searching the back yard of a residence in the 800 block of Cherry Street found Davis hiding behind an air conditioning unit.

In addition to attempted murder, Davis, of the 300 block of Spruce Street, Pottstown, Ebo-Wilson, of Elbridge Street, Philadelphia, and Jones, of Kingsessing Avenue, Philadelphia, also face charges of conspiracy to commit murder, aggravated assault, conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and weapons violations. Each of the men remains in the county jail without bail while awaiting trial.