A North Philly teen who killed a man during a botched robbery pleads guilty to murder

A North Philadelphia teen entered a surprise, last-minute plea to third-degree murder on Monday afternoon, sparing her from a trial that was set to begin Tuesday in Montgomery County.

Jahme Barnes, 19, admitted to killing Dakari Rome, 25, while sitting with him and a group of teens inside a parked car in Pottstown in 2022. The gun that killed Rome belonged to a 17-year-old whom police have not identified.

Barnes, Rome, and Kahseem Williams, 20, had planned to rob the teen of his gun, and Barnes turned the firearm on him after asking to see it, according to prosecutors. The teen swatted the gun away from Barnes as she pointed it at him during the robbery, and it went off. The bullet passed through the teen’s hand and hit Rome in his chest.

Barnes also pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and weapons violations in connection with the incident. Part of the plea negotiation included an agreement from prosecutors to cap Barnes’ sentence at 12 to 25 years in state prison and drop the first-degree murder charge she faced, according to Assistant District Attorney Gabrielle Hughes.

Hughes, in an interview Monday, said Barnes’ “reckless actions resulted in the worst-case scenario, with not just someone being injured, but someone else dying as a result.”

The plea offer was made to Barnes with the consultation of Rome’s family, according to Hughes.

“We’ve spoken to them, and any number we seek in this case is not going to feel like justice for them,” Hughes said. “No sentence will bring them closure when they have the loss of their loved one.”

Barnes’ attorney, James Lyons, declined to comment Monday, saying he wanted to wait until after his client was sentenced.

Barnes was 17 when she and Williams, 19, met with Rome and the other teenage victim on Aug. 28, 2022.

The younger victim was friends with Rome, who had told him they were going to “hang out with some girls” that night in Pottstown, according to the affidavit of probable cause for Barnes’ arrest. But Rome had deceived him: He, Williams, and Barnes had plotted to steal a 9 mm gun the teen possessed illegally.

After hanging out for a few hours, the group sat inside Rome’s parked Audi SUV, the affidavit said. At one point, Rome asked to see the teen’s gun. Rome passed it to Williams, who then handed it to Barnes. She posed with it for selfies before pointing it at the teen and demanding to know what else he had on him, the affidavit said.

When the teen reached for the gun, Barnes fired a shot that passed through his hand and struck Rome, seated next to him in the back of the car, in the chest. The teen then ran from the car as Williams got out and fired at him.

Williams was later taken into custody and charged with third-degree murder and attempted murder. He pleaded guilty to those charges in July 2023 and was sentenced to 12 to 24 years in prison.

Barnes was under court supervision at the time of the shooting after being adjudicated on weapons offenses and disorderly conduct in Philadelphia juvenile court for an incident in December 2021.

Last year, Barnes attempted to have her murder case transferred to juvenile court in Montgomery County, but that bid was denied.

She will be sentenced by Montgomery County Court Judge William R. Carpenter in the coming weeks.