Two men who had open-air gunfight in Montgomery County that killed bystander found guilty of murder

Two men accused of killing an innocent bystander caught in the crossfire of their gunfight in Norristown last year were found guilty Thursday of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison.

After less than six hours of deliberation, a jury convicted Edwin Islas-Cruz and Joshua Agudio of killing Barry Fields in September 2021. Fields, 51, was sitting on the stoop of his sister’s house on a Saturday afternoon when he was shot in the head.

Fields was pronounced dead at the scene. The bullet that hit him came from Agudio’s gun, prosecutors said.

The broad-daylight shootout was the violent climax of a social media beef that had been fomenting between the two men, with Agudio allegedly obsessed with the idea of “snitches” and “rats” in his neighborhood and openly calling out enemies to step up to him, prosecutors said.

The two men were sentenced shortly after they were convicted and did not visibly react to the jury foreman reading the verdict. A loud sigh and crying were heard from the benches where Fields’ family sat when the verdict was announced, and some of Agudio’s and Isla-Cruz’s friends and family wiped away tears.

As officers tried to handcuff the two men to lead them away, they tackled Agudio to the ground, setting off a maelstrom as his friends rushed the tables at the front of the courtroom. There was a short but tense standoff between Montgomery County sheriff’s deputies and Agudio’s friends, who shouted and cursed as the deputies placed their hands on their tasers and told the crowd to get back.

Sheriff’s deputies cleared the courtroom after the standoff.

Agudio’s attorney, Brendan Campbell, said the situation had escalated after deputies began to lead Agudio away as the two were having a conversation about the appeal process and Agudio asked to finish talking.

The verdict, sentencing, and chaotic scene followed a morning of closing arguments from attorneys for Islas-Cruz and Agudio. They argued their clients were either ambushed or had no intention of killing anyone with the nearly 40 bullets exchanged that September day.

Last September, Agudio was with a group of men outside a rowhouse on Astor Street when a Toyota Camry pulled up to them, prosecutors have said. The two men inside the car, Islas-Cruz and Giovanni Islas, got out and started shooting, according to court documents.

Agudio ran away and returned fire, according to court documents. Islas-Cruz and Islas got back into the car and fled.

On social media, Agudio had called his codefendants in an unrelated illegal gun case “rats” for allegedly cooperating with police, prosecutors said. Islas-Cruz is friends with the men Agudio called out and was angered by the threats, prosecutors said.

In Campbell’s final pitch to the jury, he claimed that Agudio was merely defending himself when he shot back at Islas-Cruz and Islas.

“September 18, 2021, was an absolute ambush,” Campbell said.

Meanwhile, Islas-Cruz’s attorney, Todd Fiore, argued that both men were well-versed in handling guns and the fact that neither was hit by gunfire despite firing dozens of shots meant his client had no intent to hurt or kill anyone.

“If either person wanted that person dead, they would be dead,” Fiore told jurors.

But prosecutors said that when the two men traded shots that day, it was to end the other’s life.

“This was eight seconds of laser-focused hatred,” Assistant District Attorney Samantha Cauffman told jurors.

The two men did “everything they could to kill each other,” said Cauffman, ignoring bystanders like Fields.

Both Fiore and Campbell said they were disappointed by the verdict.

Cauffman said that she was proud of the verdict and hoped that Fields’ family felt the justice system had worked, despite providing cold comfort in the wake of his loss.

“I’m very grateful to the jury for seeing the truth. And what just happened in the courtroom, I think it explains exactly what happened on the street that day. And that’s why we’re here. It’s unfortunate, but it’s not surprising,” said Cauffman, referring to the altercation between Agudio’s supporters and sheriff’s deputies.

Editor’s note: This article has been updated to indicate that Agudio was not handcuffed when deputy sheriffs tackled him to the ground.