A teen who opened fire in a crowded Montgomery County bowling alley last year, killing one man and injuring four others, was sentenced Wednesday to 25 to 50 years in state prison.
Jamel Barnwell, 19, pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and aggravated assault in the death of Frank Wade, 29, in the Our Town Bowling Alley in East Norriton Township in February 2021.
Barnwell said little during the hearing before Montgomery County Judge William Carpenter, who accepted the sentence negotiated between Barnwell’s attorney and county prosecutors.
Wade’s loved ones packed the courtroom, weeping quietly as the events of that day were recalled. Wade’s brother-in-law and grandmother testified and said Barnwell’s actions had torn their family apart.
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“I will not forget what you did, but I will forgive you,” said the victim’s grandmother, Gladys Wade. She called Barnwell a coward and said she hopes he will “rot in hell.”
“I want to see justice served to the max,” she told the judge.
Barnwell was with friends at the bowling alley that night, and brought an illegal gun with an extended magazine with him, prosecutors said. While he was there, an argument broke out between two groups after one of Barnwell’s friends bumped into another man. The argument escalated into a fight, and Barnwell pulled out his gun and fired into the crowd, sending nearby bystanders screaming and ducking for cover.
Four men in the other group were struck in their legs, and Wade was hit and knocked to the ground. Barnwell then stood over Wade as he lay prone and continued to shoot until he ran out of bullets.
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Barnwell’s attorney, Thomas Egan, said Barnwell regretted his actions, and was sorry he brought his weapon to the bowling alley.
“The real tragedy of this is the young men with guns these days. They all feel like they need to carry guns,” Egan said. “In the old days, this would be settled with a fistfight.”
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He noted that Barnwell was 17 at the time of the shooting — he had unsuccessfully sought to have the case tried in juvenile court, which prosecutors opposed because of the nature of the crime.
» READ MORE: Teen charged with killing a man in a crowded Montgomery County bowling alley wants to be tried in juvenile court
Assistant District Attorney Tanner Beck said after the hearing that the shooting was a “senseless, vicious act of violence” that put dozens of people in danger.
“It’s really a miracle that no one else was injured in this case,” Beck said. “This case sends a powerful message that this type of behavior is not going to go on in Montgomery County and go unpunished.”
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