The Times Herald (Norristown, PA)
Trial starts for men accused in shootout in Norristown
Edwin ‘Bam’ Islas-Cruz and Joshua M. Agudio Jr. face homicide charges in death of an innocent bystander
NORRISTOWN >> A Montgomery County jury viewed disturbing video surveillance camera footage that captured the last seconds of the life of a Norristown man who was fatally shot as he sat on the steps of his Norristown residence, caught in the crossfire during a violent shootout between several men.
“Eight seconds of relentless gunfire. This was a violent street battle that ended with an innocent man, Barry Fields, with a hole in his head bleeding out on the sidewalk. Eight seconds to snuff out an innocent man’s life,” Assistant District Attorney Samantha Cauffman argued during her opening statement to jurors as the homicide trial of Norristown men Edwin “Bam” Islas-Cruz and Joshua M. Agudio Jr. got underway on Monday.
“Both of these defendants were aggressors in this violent gun battle that ended Barry’s life. It took both of them for Barry to be killed,” added Cauffman, who is handling the case with co-prosecutor Gwendolyn Kull. “This was on a crowded street where the law says you can’t just fire a gun at abandon.”
Islas-Cruz, 24, of the 100 block of West Fornance Street, and Agudio, 21, of the 1000 block of Forest Avenue, who allegedly were firing shots at each other, face charges of first- and third-degree murder in connection with the 5:21 p.m. Sept. 18, 2021, shootout in the 600 block of Astor Street that killed 51-year-old Barry Fields, who was not involved in the shooting and was caught in the crossfire as he sat on the steps of his residence enjoying a warm end of summer evening outdoors with family.
A conviction of first-degree murder, which is an intentional killing, carries a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment. A conviction of third-degree murder, a killing committed with malice or hardness of heart and cruelty, carries a possible maximum sentence of 20 to 40 years in prison.
With the charges, prosecutors alleged the men involved in the shootout had malice and acted with specific intent to kill at the time.
The men were charged with homicide under the legal theory of so-called “transferred intent,” which prosecutors use when a defendant allegedly intends to kill one person but instead inadvertently causes the death of a second, different person. Under state law, the intent transfers from the intended victim to the actual victim.
Cauffman alleged there was an ongoing “beef” between Agudio and IslasCruz and friends of IslasCruz and that the gun violence was an outgrowth of that disagreement.
Cauffman alleged three guns and a total of 39 bullets were fired during the shootout involving IslasCruz, his brother, Giovanni Islas, of the unit block of West Basin Street, and Agudio. Authorities are still searching for Giovanni Islas for his alleged role in the incident. While Islas was 16 at the time of the alleged shooting, he was charged as an adult because of the violent nature of crime.
Prosecutors theorized the shot that killed Fields came from a weapon fired from Agudio’s location on the street. That weapon was never recovered because Agudio got rid of it after the shooting, prosecutors alleged.
But defense lawyer Brendan Michael Campbell, who represents Agudio, argued Agudio acted in self-defense when he was fired upon by Islas-Cruz and Islas, who drove onto the street in a black Toyota Camry.
“This was an ambush, that’s what this was,” Campbell argued during his opening statement to jurors, claiming Agudio fired back in self-defense when he was shot upon 25 times. “My client was justified in what he did. Testimony will show my client was in fear for his life.”
Defense lawyer Todd R. Fiore, who represents Islas-Cruz, suggested prosecutors will not present sufficient evidence to prove that Islas-Cruz was one of the men who arrived in the Toyota Camry or involved in the shootout.
“You will have doubts. You will pause and you will hesitate,” Fiore argued during his opening statement, claiming there is reasonable doubt in the case.
The trial before Judge William R. Carpenter is expected to last about a week.
The investigation began about 5:21 p.m. Sept. 18 when Norristown police were dispatched to the 600 block of Astor Street after a 911 caller reported hearing about 20 gunshots. Responding officers found Fields deceased and lying on the sidewalk in front of his residence, according to the criminal complaint filed by county Detective William Mitchell Jr. and Norristown Detective Joshua Keenan.
“It appeared he sustained a gunshot wound to the left side of his face. He showed no signs of life,” Norristown Police Corporal Tyler North, the first officer on the scene, testified for the jury.
Jodi Peregrina, Fields’s sister, tearfully recalled being outside with family members when she observed a black Toyota Camry double park in the street shortly after Agudio walked by and saw two men get out of the vehicle and begin shooting.
“I heard the shots being fired and dropped to the ground. Barry just sat there. He didn’t know what was going on. As he was in the process of getting down he was struck in the face with a bullet that killed him,” an emotional Peregrina
testified, adding “too many” when asked how many shots she heard.
Witnesses, video surveillance and physical evidence determined that two males, Islas-Cruz and Islas drove onto the block in a Toyota Camry, exited the vehicle and began firing shots north on Astor Street, where a group of males, including Agudio, was gathered, according to court papers.
Two of the men who had been hanging out in the area, identified as Agudio and Brandon Dontay Darden, 26, of the 300 block of Center Avenue, Norristown, returned fire, authorities originally alleged in court documents.
In court papers filed in June, prosecutors alleged that during the shootout Darden took cover behind a car but then inserted himself back into the gun battle towards the end of the shooting.
Darden pleaded guilty earlier this year to a felony charge of person not to possess a firearm in connection with the incident and was sentenced to 5 to 10 years in prison as part of a plea agreement. At the time, prosecutors explained Darden’s guilty plea was an indication of the fact that he was there and that he did possess a firearm illegally. Charges of first- and third-degree murder were dismissed against Darden.
After the burst of gunfire, Islas-Cruz and Islas got back into the black Camry and sped away, according to court papers. The investigation determined Islas-Cruz was operating the borrowed Toyota Camry at the time of the shooting.
During an autopsy of Fields, a forensic pathologist noted a single entrance wound to the left side of the face, entering the left cheek and striking the brain stem. The doctor recovered a projectile and ruled the cause of death was a single gunshot wound to the head and the manner of death was homicide.
Detectives recovered 39 fired 9mm cartridge casings in the block.