N. Philly teenager gets 29 to 62 years for gunning down teen on bike
Tyree Johnson's guilty plea agreement does not require him to testify against codefendant Raheim Feaster in the 2015 slaying of Saleem West.
One of two teens accused of gunning down a 16-year-old riding his bike in North Philadelphia in 2015 has pleaded guilty to murder.
Tyree Johnson, 19, pleaded guilty Monday to third-degree murder, conspiracy, and a gun charge in the Nov. 1, 2015, slaying of Saleem West and the attempted murder of West's 15-year-old friend.
Johnson was immediately sentenced by Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge J. Scott O'Keefe to the 29- to 62-year prison term that was part of the guilty plea, which defense lawyer James A. Lammendola negotiated with the District Attorney's Office.
Assistant District Attorney Kristen Kemp said Johnson's plea agreement does not require him to testify against his codefendant, Raheim Feaster, 19.
O'Keefe scheduled Feaster's murder trial for March 7, 2018.
West and his friend were riding bikes at 20th and York Streets around 4:30 p.m. when they were confronted by four or five youths, two of whom opened fire.
West, shot once in the back, was found by police in the street in the 2200 block of West Sedgley Avenue. Police recovered 17 .40-caliber cartridge casings fired from two pistols.
At the time, police said Feaster and Johnson were members of a neighborhood gang suspected in a series of North Philadelphia shootings.
At last year's preliminary hearing for Feaster and Johnson, West's friend testified that the shooting followed a street-corner dispute between West and Feaster in August 2015.