Falls man indicted for murder
Sep. 16—LOCKPORT — The second of two men indicted by a Niagara County grand jury in connection with a bold, midday murder in the city's North End on May 30 was arraigned in court on Wednesday.
Rodney Barnes-Staley, 21, pleaded not guilty, before Niagara County Court Judge Caroline Wojtaszek, to charges of second-degree murder and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon in the shooting death of Demetrious Gray. He also pleaded not guilty to a count of second-degree assault in the wounding of a man who was with Gray at the time of his murder.
A co-defendant in the case, Felipe Rodriguez, 22, pleaded not guilty to the same charges at an arraignment on Aug. 23.
Barnes-Staley has been held without bail since his arrest July 20 on murder and weapons possession counts. He surrendered to police with his attorney then and pleaded not guilty to those charges. The grand jury indictment now supersedes those charges.
Rodriguez is also being held without bail.
Niagara County District Attorney Brian Seaman said indictments stemmed from an investigation by Falls Police. The case is being prosecuted by Executive Assistant District Attorney Mary-Jean Bowman and Grand Jury Bureau Chief Maria Stoelting.
The shooting of Gray and another man took place in the 1600 block of Linwood Avenue. Police said they were called to a report of "shots fired and a man down" just before 1 p.m. on May 30.
When patrol officers arrived on the scene, they found Grey, 28, suffering from a gunshot wound to his upper body. Police said a passerby and two responding patrol officers attempted CPR on Grey but were unable to revive him. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The second victim, a 27-year-old Falls man, was taken to Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center for treatment of a gunshot wound to his foot. The wound was described as non-life-threatening.
Falls Police detectives said they were initially hampered in their investigation by a lack of cooperation from witnesses to the incident.
Both victims were reportedly standing in front of 1667 Linwood Ave., the scene of a prior shooting on March 27. In the May 30 shooting, investigators said an unidentified car pulled into the intersection of 18th Street and Linwood Avenue, a short distance from where Gray and the other man were standing.
The car stopped in the intersection, and police said two gunmen got out of the vehicle and began firing at the victims. The gunmen then jumped back into the car and the vehicle sped away from the scene.
Sources close to the investigation say Barnes-Staley and Rodriguez were the gunmen.
Falls Police Crime Scene Unit detectives recovered eight spent shell casings in and near the intersection of 18th Street and Linwood Avenue.
The March 27 incident involved the host of a large party in the building at 1667 Linwood Ave. being shot several times. The 30-year-old male victim was taken to the Erie County Medical Center in Buffalo for treatment of his wounds.
Police have not provided any recent updates on the status of that victim or their investigation of that shooting.
The building at 1667 Linwood Ave. has been described by sources as a "make-shift bar." Sources have also told the Gazette that individuals involved with the operation of that location may also have had ties to a former Highland Avenue speakeasy known as the "Red Room" or "Red House".
That violence-plagued party house was shut down after Falls city building inspectors condemned the property in September.
