Update: Key Witness in Duluth Hillside Murder Fears for his Life
Update II: Spent shells, Witness ID Fears
By: Mark Stodghill, Duluth News Tribune
 Philbert Nathanial Barnes (right), whose local nickname is “Darkman,” brought the gun and fired the shot that killed a 22-year-old Duluth man outside a Central Hillside duplex on July 12, a witness told police.
Police made that information public Thursday as the St. Louis County Attorney’s Office prepared formal charges against Barnes, 39, who authorities say shot and killed Curtis Michael Cooney.
Police confirmed witness accounts that the shooting might have been sparked by a fight about a dog.
Police spokesman Brad Wick said Barnes wasn’t involved in the dog incident, “but we believe somebody involved in that called him up afterwards.’’
He said police have known the identities of their three main suspects, but they didn’t have grounds for an arrest until a witness came forward to identify Barnes. Wick said he couldn’t comment when asked if one of the other suspects was the person who identified Barnes.
Assistant St. Louis County Attorney Leslie Beiers, who supervises her office’s criminal division, said she anticipates charges being filed today. However, she said police have compiled voluminous reports on the case, and it’s possible the county attorney would seek an extension from the court that could delay formal charges until Monday.
Ephriam “Darell’’ Burks, 21, was shot once in the upper leg in the same incident.
Barnes is being held on preliminary charges of second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder.
Wick said unique shell casings found at the Central Hillside shooting scene have been connected to another Duluth shooting and may have played a role in solving the case.
Barnes lists Chicago (wow, surprise, surprise!) as his birthplace. Police believe he has lived in Duluth for about three years.
He has two court hearings scheduled for Monday on earlier charges. He was charged in May with violation of an order for protection and domestic assault. Barnes also is scheduled to have a violation of probation hearing on a 2008 violation of an order for protection conviction.
In police reports of the 2008 incident, a woman, who identified herself as Barnes’ ex-girlfriend, said he threatened to kill her. In the May incident, Barnes is accused of pushing the same woman against the wall in her house, causing scratches and small bruises.
"Darkman's" Domestic Abuse Case:
http://pa.courts.state.mn.us/CaseDetail.aspx?CaseID=1612197410
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