Brian A. Martin, the Johnsonburg man accused in a Ridgway barroom shooting in May, received a mixed verdict from a jury in Elk County Court last week.
Martin, 36, was accused of killing 42-year-old Ridgway man David Corey after a very brief interaction May 5 at Cully’s bar, 231 W. Main St., Ridgway.
According to court records, Martin was found guilty of charges of third-degree murder, a first-degree felony, and recklessly endangering another person, a second-degree misdemeanor. Meanwhile, he was acquitted of a first-degree felony charge of criminal homicide.
Records indicate a third-degree felony charge of discharge of a firearm into an occupied structure was withdrawn last week.
The criminal complaint filed at the time of Martin’s arrest alleged that at 2:15 a.m. May 5, Ridgway Borough Police were dispatched to Cully’s for a report of shots fired. Police arrived to see Martin being detained by another male outside the front door of the establishment.
Inside, police saw Corey lying on the floor by the entrance. He was transported by ambulance to Penn Highlands Elk, where he died.
Martin told police he had a license to carry a concealed weapon and would keep one in the back of his waistband. He said the alleged victim attacked him, striking him in the back of the head several times, and he could not defend himself, according to the complaint.
Martin said he “felt he was in danger and retrieved the weapon from the back of his waist band and began firing the weapon at the victim,” the complaint stated.
Investigators determined that Martin had no apparent injuries, while Corey had several gunshot wounds.
The Ridgway Record reported that surveillance footage showed the two men interacted for less than a minute before shots were fired.
Reynoldsville attorney Joseph Ryan, who represented Martin, said his client was acting in self-defense, the Record stated.
Representing the commonwealth were Simquita Bridges and Alicia Werner of the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General.
Martin, who has been incarcerated since May without the possibility of bail, remains in custody. No sentencing date was immediately available.
