The St. Croix man videotaped shooting a woman neighbor at close range July 4, then firing into a crowd of scattering children, striking the woman’s daughter, pleaded guilty, U.S. Attorney Delia L. Smith announced Friday.
Miguel Marrero, 52, admitted to discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, being a felon in possession of a firearm, and two counts of assault in the first degree. Marrero faces a maximum sentence of up to life in prison, Smith said.
Morrero was scheduled to be sentenced July 2, according to court records.
The holiday shooting happened in the courtyard of the Candido Guadalupe Terrace housing community. A video recording of the incident shows Marrero arguing with the victim. The slender woman appears to swipe at his face and maybe hit him before Marrero draws a handgun and shoots her in the back or side as she spins away from the weapon.
As the victim fell, Marrero calmly levels the handgun at someone off camera and fires several more times. At least 10 children and other people gathered nearby, including a woman who appeared to be holding an infant, scattered in all directions. The woman’s 15-year-old daughter was struck in the leg and ankle as she ran.
The girl was treated and released from Juan F. Luis Hospital, but her mother underwent emergency surgery to repair damage to major organs, according to police.
The shooting seemed to stem from a feud between the children of Marrero and the victim, police said.
Other charges against Morrero — reckless endangerment, child abuse, third-degree assault, and possession of a firearm in a school zone — were dropped.
