Diyon Barnes, a 24-year-old Black/African American man from Chester, Pennsylvania, died on February 16, 1997, after a confrontation in the city turned violent. Online memorial information identifies him as a victim of gun violence in Chester, and obituary information describes him as a Chester native, a 1993 graduate of Chester High School, and a laborer at Man Power in Media. He was taken to Crozer-Chester Medical Center in Upland, where he died.
The killing unfolded during an altercation involving Damon “Fuji” Pierce, who was also from Chester. According to a Delaware County Daily Times report preserved online, Barnes confronted Pierce because Barnes believed Pierce was the alleged mastermind behind a robbery committed against him. The confrontation escalated into a fight, and Pierce pulled out a. 22-caliber revolver. Barnes was shot once in the chest and died about 45 minutes later at Crozer-Chester Medical Center.
Pierce, who was 19 at the time of the court proceedings, became the identified suspect in Barnes's death. His case did not proceed through a full trial because, on the day jury selection had been scheduled to begin, he pleaded guilty to third-degree murder for shooting Barnes. The plea placed responsibility for the fatal shooting on Pierce rather than leaving the case unresolved or proceeding to a contested verdict.
At sentencing, Judge Frank T. Hazel ordered Pierce to serve 7 to 17 years for the homicide. Pierce also pleaded guilty to unauthorized use of a vehicle tied to an August 1996 incident, along with two counts of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance from May 1995. Those additional penalties included one year of state probation for the vehicle offense and 15 to 36 months for each drug charge, all to run concurrently.
