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Scranton man withdraws guilty plea in killing at bar

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A Scranton man will go to trial next month after deciding to withdraw his guilty plea to fatally shooting a man between the eyes at a now-shuttered South Side bar last year.

Derrick Phillips, 41, was set to be sentenced this week before Lackawanna County Judge Margaret Bisignani Moyle after he pleaded guilty in August to voluntary manslaughter, a charge that could have sent him to state prison for 10 to 20 years.

Instead, the case - involving the fatal shooting of Malik Asad Carter, 28, of Harrisburg, on May 16, 2011, in a bathroom at Finn McCool's bar - is now set for trial before a jury on Dec. 10, Deputy District Attorney Shane Scanlon said Wednesday.

City officials condemned the Cedar Avenue bar and a county judge ordered it shuttered because of the shooting, other violent incidents and a slew of code violations.

Days before the killing, two men were stabbed there.

Mr. Phillips was charged with first- and third-degree murder, aggravated assault, recklessly endangering another person, and weapons offenses. By agreeing to plead guilty to voluntary manslaughter, prosecutors agreed to drop all other charges, including the murder counts.

"We're ready to go" to trial, his attorney, Matt Comerford said Wednesday.

Though his attorney declined to say why his client had a change of heart, Mr. Comerford said he intends to present a self-defense case.

Mr. Comerford said Mr. Phillips and Mr. Carter had a violent encounter prior to the bar shooting, in which Mr. Carter held Mr. Phillips at gunpoint.

Mr. Carter was also armed with a loaded gun on the night of the shooting, Mr. Comerford said.

"They are two facts that are not in dispute," he said. "We're going to trial because he was legally justified" to act in self-defense.

"He's not denying that he shot him," Mr. Comerford added. "It's not a question of whodunit."

Prosecutors have said there was a history of physical violence between them. Their acrimony may have been over stolen drugs, according to testimony at Mr. Phillips' preliminary hearing.

If convicted, he could face life in state prison.

Contact the writer: smcconnell@ timesshamrock.com @smcconnellTT on Twitter


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