North Side man pleads guilty to fatal 2020 shooting in Brighton Heights

A man from Pittsburgh’s North Side will serve 20 to 40 years in prison after pleading guilty to third-degree murder for killing another man on the North Side two years ago.

Darnell McFadden, 25, also pleaded guilty to a firearms violation in an appearance Thursday before Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Kevin G. Sasinoski.

Investigators said McFadden shot and killed Demetrius Herring, 28, early on June 14, 2020, in the 1200 block of Woods Run Avenue, across from Rumerz Sports Bar and Grill in Brighton Heights.

Damon Johnson also was wounded.

Police dispatchers received multiple ShotSpotter alerts in that area, and when police arrived, they found Herring with a gunshot wound to his chest.

Investigators used video surveillance from the area to determine that the suspect arrived near the scene in a dark-colored Chevy Impala.

The vehicle was spotted later that morning by police on Fulton Street after reports of another shooting in the 1300 block of North Franklin Street.

The car had ballistic damage to the rear passenger side, and a gun was spotted on the driver’s side floorboard, the criminal complaint said.

As they were investigating, detectives were called a short distance away for the report of a shooting victim. There they found McFadden sitting in a Honda Pilot with a gunshot wound to his left leg.

Officers used video surveillance footage to track the movements of the Impala, the complaint said.

Shell casings taken from Herring’s shooting matched the firearm found in the Impala, police said.

In addition, investigators said McFadden’s phone records showed he was in the area of Rumerz at the time of the shooting.

McFadden was arrested on Feb. 9, 2021.