Man guilty of third-degree murder in 2021 shooting

A Philadelphia man was found guilty last week of murder and weapons offenses in connection with the April 2021 shooting death of Jamil Mallory outside a bar in the 700 block of East Baltimore Avenue in East Lansdowne.

Bruce Brown, 56, of 5700 West Jefferson Street, was found guilty of first-degree murder and prohibited from possessing a firearm and carrying a firearm without a permit, but was acquitted of the first-degree murder charge.

Brown was arrested on April 12, four days after he shot Mallory outside Jerry's Bar. Police arrested him at his business, Car Care Auto Repair, at 7504 E. Marshall Road in Upper Darby.

Brown, represented by defense attorney Luke Mercurio, did not deny that he shot Mallory, but stated that he did so in self-defense because he believed Mallory had a gun and was trying to shoot him.

Police responded to a report of a shooting on April 8, 2021, shortly after 8 p.m. and found Mallory on the sidewalk outside the bar with three gunshot wounds. Paramedics took him to Penn Presbyterian Hospital for treatment, but he succumbed to his injuries on April 13.

The jury heard from the bartender who was working that night, who described Mallory as a regular and a good boy. He said he detained Mallory after the shooting and that the victim did not have a weapon on him.

Another witness who was with Mallory at the bar gave defensive answers to Assistant District Attorney Geoff Paine about what happened that night, but also confirmed that the victim was not carrying a weapon and that he never saw him with a firearm.

According to District Detective James B. Cadden, Brown was considered a suspect because he arrived at the bar that same evening in his company truck, which had the company name on the side, as seen on surveillance camera footage.

Cadden said he went to the store on April 12 and found Brown there wearing the same clothing as the shooter in the video. Brown had locked himself inside the store and had to be rescued by a SWAT team.

Brown was taken into custody along with a .44 caliber revolver, although that was not the firearm used to kill Mallory. Brown is prohibited from possessing a firearm due to a 1991 robbery conviction.

The shooting was captured on video. The gunman shot Mallory after he hit another person who worked for Brown, then fired twice more while Mallory was on the ground, then left the scene.

Brown testified that he went to the bar that night because he received a call from Mallory offering to give him the $500 he owed him for work he had done on his truck.

But Brown said Mallory started verbally abusing him as soon as he sat at the bar. Brown said he left to go home and feed his daughter, but the defense witness followed him and offered to pay some of the money owed.

They went together to a nearby ATM, where the witness said he gave him $100.

When they went back to the bar, Brown said Mallory was outside threatening the man who worked for him. Brown said Mallory said he was going to kill them both and Brown “took him seriously.”

Brown said he stepped between Mallory and the other man to break up the confrontation. He claimed he saw what looked like a pistol grip sticking out of Mallory's waistband earlier in the bar, but no firearm was found on Mallory or at the scene.

After Mallory allegedly made his threat, he stepped back, Brown said, and Mallory struck the other man twice with a sneak punch, causing him to disappear from Brown's sight. Then Brown shot Mallory with his own gun, knocking him to the ground.

Brown claimed that Mallory reached for his waistband on the ground and that's why he shot again. He said he could not remember firing the third shot.

Another witness then grabbed him, threw him into the street and told him, “It's over,” Brown said.

As the man walked away, Brown said he saw another young man on the sidewalk pointing a gun at him, so he got in his car and drove away.

Brown said he spent the next few days closing up shop at his store and gave the gun to another man named “Marcus,” but could not remember his last name.

Brown acknowledged under cross-examination that he was not allowed to carry a firearm, but said he always carried one with him because he ran a cash-only business and had been robbed before.

Brown said he shot Mallory because he suspected Mallory might shoot him, but he acknowledged that he did not act the same way with the young man who actually pointed a gun at him.

Brown also agreed with Paine that Mallory appeared to have removed his glasses before hitting the other man, an action someone might take if preparing for a fight, but probably not something someone would do if they were planning to shoot someone else.

The jury deliberated for about two hours before reaching its verdict.

Brown is being held without bail in the Concord County Jail. Judge Mary Alice Brennan of Common Pleas Court has scheduled sentencing for November 4.