Trial on track for December for Marion teen charged in fatal shooting

CEDAR RAPIDS — The trial for a Marion teen charged in the fatal shooting of 16-year-old Michael Alexander McCune in February remains on track for Dec. 5 in Linn County District Court.

Baynon “BJ” Berry, 16, of Marion, was waived from juvenile court into adult — district — court in May. He was 15 years old when the fatal attack on McCune happened Feb. 18, allegedly over past conflicts.

A judge previously ruled Berry wasn’t a “good candidate” for rehabilitation through juvenile court because of a previous juvenile adjudication for possession of a dangerous weapon and was on probation when he and three other teens are accused of killing McCune.

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During a case management hearing Friday, 6th Judicial District Chief Judge Lars Anderson confirmed the December date for trial and went over some deadlines for motions and will set another hearing in October.

Anderson asked if there was any plea offer in the works and Assistant Linn County Molly Edwards said one had been made and the deadline to accept the offer is Sept. 1. She didn’t provide any details of the offer.

One co-defendant, Dante Irvin, 15, previously accepted a plea agreement made by Edwards to plead guilty to first-degree murder as a youthful offender. He will remain under the jurisdiction of the Linn County Juvenile Court until he turns 18, at that time, he will return to district court and a judge will decide whether to sentence him to life with the possibility of parole, a lesser prison term, probation, or he could be released.

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Irvin will first return to juvenile court for disposition, meaning a judge will order him to go to a juvenile facility, such as the Boys State Training School in Eldora or another facility. That hearing is set for Sept. 28 in juvenile court.

Irvin could be difficult to place in a juvenile facility because Kelly Garcia, director of the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, in a letter obtained by The Gazette in May, asked the court not to place the teen at the training school in Eldora.

Garcia said McCune, a former student at the training school, “identified” with a Cedar Rapids area gang, “The Money Boyz.” And Irvin has a known affiliation with a “rival gang, who are suspected to be responsible” for McCune’s fatal shooting, she wrote.

Several of McCune’s friends “and former gang members” now live at the training school, Garcia said in the letter. The school is an open campus and not a prison or detention facility. Placing him at the school would be safety risk, she wrote.

Trial for TraMontez Lockett, 16, is set for Sept. 19. He is charged in district court with first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit a forcible felony, first-degree theft and going armed with intent.

The other teen also charged in district court, Devin Gardner, 16, of Maquoketa, will be tried Oct. 24. He is charged with first-degree theft, conspiracy to commit a forcible felony and accessory after the fact.

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According to a criminal complaint, police found McCune with eight gunshot wounds around 11:30 a.m. Feb. 18 inside the entryway of an apartment building at the Tan Tara Apartments in the 1600 block of F Avenue NW in Cedar Rapids.

Lockett and one of those individuals were seen on video surveillance at a convenience store and identified as the two who stole a 2019 Toyota RAV4 from that location the day of the fatal shooting, according to the complaint.

Lockett and that individual met two others and all four went to the Tan Tara Apartments in the stolen SUV, the complaint stated.

McCune’s phone showed Lockett had been messaging him through Snapchat and had arranged to pick up McCune at the apartments, according to a search warrant affidavit and complaint.

When the three saw McCune, the two individuals with Lockett started shooting at McCune. One of the individuals ran into the apartment building, continuing to shoot at McCune at close range, the complaint stated.

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