Terry Jimenez, one of three men accused of killing a bystander in a shootout at the 2011 Caribbean Festival, pleaded guilty Friday, a week before his trial was scheduled to begin.
Prosecutors say Jimenez traded gunfire with rival gang members Deonte J. Bryant and Terrance Bush during the event. Jimenez and two others were wounded in the exchange.
Robert Foster Jr., a bystander, was killed. The three men were charged with murder according to the urban warfare doctrine, which makes all three potentially culpable for Foster’s death, regardless of who fired the bullet that killed him.
All three pleaded innocent at their joint arraignment last year. The men were charged as codefendants, even though they were shooting at each other. Judge John Ramsey Johnson denied a defense motion to sever the cases on April 5.
Jimenez pleaded guilty to three of the eighteen charges against him, including first-degree murder while armed, assault with intent to kill, and aggravated assault knowingly while armed. The further sixteen charges, including additional counts of first-degree murder, assault with intent to kill, and aggravated assault as well as various weapons charges related to possessing, carrying, and using weapons without licenses, were dismissed.
Sentencing is scheduled for July 12. A trial for Bryant and Bush is scheduled to begin May 13.
