Dog walker, 25, pleads guilty to involuntary manslaughter in death of another dog walker

A Point Breeze man who fatally punched another man in January 2019 while both were walking their dogs in a Southwark dog park pleaded guilty Monday to involuntary manslaughter.

The guilty plea by Matthew Oropeza before Common Pleas Court Judge Glenn Bronson was non-negotiated, meaning the judge will determine the punishment during a May 28 sentencing hearing. During Monday’s brief hearing, the District Attorney’s Office dropped charges of making terroristic threats, simple assault, and reckless endangerment.

Involuntary manslaughter is a first-degree misdemeanor that carries a maximum sentence of five years in state prison.

Oropeza, 25, of the 1600 block of South 16th Street, has remained free on $75,000 bail since his arrest Jan. 10, 2019. He told a judge at a previous hearing that he lives with his girlfriend and their young son.

His deadly clash with fellow dog walker Drew Justice happened Jan. 5, 2019, in Gold Star Park. Authorities said Oropeza punched Justice after Justice complained that Oropeza’s two dogs were unleashed. The punch caused Justice to fall backward, hit the ground, and die shortly afterward.

Days before the fatal punch, Oropeza had a verbal spat with another man at the same park, also about his dogs not being leashed, Assistant District Attorney Danielle Burkavage said during Oropeza’s preliminary hearing in January 2019.

“The defendant aggressively came toward that witness, who was with his wife and small child, and said something along the lines of, ‘Say it to my face, say it to my face,’” Burkavage said.

Burkavage also cited a 2016 incident in Delaware County in which Oropeza was charged with disorderly conduct after he shoved a man outside a bar on MacDade Boulevard. Burkavage said the man suffered facial injuries. Oropeza also was arrested on drug charges after police found “six small baggies of a white powdery substance suspected to be cocaine,” Burkavage said. Oropeza completed a diversionary program as a result of the charges.

“These incidents show what the defendant is made of,” Burkavage said. “And by that I mean he shows volatility and aggression.”

“It is never acceptable to inflict violence, much less violence against a neighbor in a neighborly setting,” District Attorney Larry Krasner said after Monday’s hearing. “May the loved ones of the deceased continue to find healing and support from loving neighbors, and may this defendant find rehabilitation and repair while serving his sentence.”

Oropeza’s lawyer, Fortunato “Fred” Perri Jr., did not return a call seeking comment.