A Westmoreland County judge said he struggled with how to strike a balance between the rough upbringings that impacted three young defendants and their convictions last year related to their roles in July 3, 2022, fatal shooting in front of a New Kensington apartment building.
Amir Kennedy, 16, DaMontae Brooks, 17, and Elijah Gary, 20, all of New Kensington, were sentenced Friday to lengthy prison sentences in connection with the death of 39-year-old Jason Raiford.
“None of these defendants had a fighting chance,” said Judge Christopher Feliciani, as he acknowledged hardships such as poverty, fatherless households and lives surrounded by violence.
Kennedy, who police said shot Raiford 11 times — including multiple rounds to his back as he lay on the ground — was ordered to serve 30 to 60 years in prison.
Prosecutors described Gary as the ringleader of the group of seven young men and teens who ambushed Raiford at the Valley Royal Court Apartments over an owed drug debt. He was sentenced to 10 to 20 years behind bars.