A gay man who fatally shot a guest at his Society Hill Towers residence won’t be charged with any crime, a spokesperson for District Attorney Larry Krasner said this week.
“It does appear to be self-defense,” Jane Roh told PGN.
The incident took place at 8:07 p.m. Jan. 21, located on the 200 block of Locust Street in Society Hill.
A 31-year-old Black male visited an older Caucasian gay man due to an arrangement they made via the dating app Grindr.
After entering the residence, the decedent reportedly attempted to unlawfully rob his host. The host retreated into his bedroom and obtained a legally-registered firearm. Then, he shot the decedent multiple times in the torso.
The decedent was transported to Jefferson Hospital and pronounced dead at 8:31 p.m. Jan. 21. A firearm was recovered and the shooter has been cooperative with authorities.
Neither the shooter’s name nor the decedent’s name is being released, at this time.
Roh said the Philadelphia Police Department and the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office agree that no criminal charges should be filed against the shooter, at this time.
“We agree with each other,” Roh continued. “Based on the information that we have at this time, there are no charges to be filed against the Society Hill Towers resident.”
The shooter is visually impaired and called police immediately after discharging his weapon. “The information is based largely on what he [the shooter] told us,” Roh added.
A previous LGBTQ-related killing occurred at Society Hill Towers in August 1971 when Lois Farquharson allegedly induced her female lover to fatally shoot Leon Weingrad in an employment-related dispute. Farquharson died in January 2017, after four decades in state prison.
This is a developing story.