Young people accused of attempted murder waived their hearing

Two teenagers charged with attempted murder and related crimes after allegedly shooting at another person in September have waived their preliminary hearings in exchange for their cases possibly being transferred to juvenile court.

Marvin Edwards, Darby, and Semaj Chandler, both 17, of Philadelphia, are charged with aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, receiving stolen property, conspiracy and firearms charges in connection with the Sept. 5 shooting on the CSX train tracks in Darby.

Deputy District Attorney Rachel Sweeney said at a pair of brief hearings Thursday before Magistrate District Judge Lee Cullen Grimes that both defendants waived all charges outright as a “good faith” bid for possible decertification, which would lead to their cases being withdrawn. to juvenile court.

Edwards’ defense attorney, Luke Mercurio, said nothing was promised by the state, but the waiver was a “good step” forward in the process.

Accordingly Information previously provided by Darby police:

A report of shots fired in the area of ​​North Fifth Street and Darby Terrace/Greenway Avenue came to the station around 10 a.m., thanks to a tracking technology called ShotSpotter that notifies police of gunshots in real time, allowing them to respond more quickly.

Responding officers learned that three shots had been fired at a victim along railroad tracks in the area and that two Black males had run from the scene toward North Third Street.

Police converged on the area and saw two males matching the description running from North Third to Darby Terrace. The police caught the young people and detained them.

At the time, Darby Police Chief Joe Gabe said police found a firearm on a suspect that was determined to be stolen.

Edwards and Chandler, represented by William Weiss, were arraigned at a preliminary hearing by Magistrate District Judge George B. Dawson, who set bail at $500,000 cash bail. They have been in custody ever since.

Lawyers stated that children should undergo evaluations to determine their risk of re-offending and their status as subject to supervision in the juvenile system.

Both will have their official hearing at the Medya Regional Courthouse on December 4.

Daily Times reporter Pete Bannan contributed to this story.