Teen who shot Washington woman pleads guilty to third-degree murder
Worthey shot victim as she sat on front porch
Mike Jones/Observer-Reporter
The teenager who shot and killed a Washington woman as she sat on her front porch pleaded guilty Monday morning nearly three years to the day after the fatal shooting.
Juan Worthey III entered an open guilty plea of third-degree murder before Judge Valarie Costanzo moments before jury selection was set to begin for his homicide trial this week at the Washington County Courthouse.
Worthey, who was 16 at the time of the May 11, 2022, drive-by shooting, admitted to firing the fatal shots that struck 58-year-old Kristin Barfield as she sat outside her home at 219 Ridge Ave. in the city. The driver of the vehicle, 33-year-old Brandon Ronald Allen of Washington, was convicted by a Washington County jury in January of attempted homicide, aggravated assault and other charges for his role in the shooting in which he was accused of firing one shot before his gun jammed.
The two shooters were believed to be firing at Barfield’s son, Trey Willis, as he walked up his mother’s front steps to visit her, but she was inadvertently struck by the errant bullets.
Tyriq Xavier Moss, who was sitting in the backseat of the car next to Worthey, was also charged in the shooting, but cooperated with investigators and testified against Allen at his trial and was expected to do so again this week in exchange for the homicide case against him to be dropped.
Another witness in the car testified at Worthey’s preliminary hearing in July 2022 that after Allen drove the group to Mt. Pleasant Township to hide the getaway vehicle, Worthey kissed the handgun used in the shooting and gleefully exclaimed his happiness about killing Barfield.
Worthey, a former Washington resident who turns 20 next month, will appear before Costanzo for sentencing at 10 a.m. July 29. He faces 20 to 40 years in prison, although Costanzo could deviate from the standard range since Worthey entered an open plea, giving her leeway to make her own decision on what punishment he should receive.
Moss, of Washington, who was 15 at the time of the shooting but is now an adult, is scheduled to plead guilty to lesser charges June 10, while Allen is set to be sentenced by Costanzo at 10:30 a.m June 16.