Judge finds New Kensington man’s killer guilty of 3rd-degree murder

A McKeesport man was convicted Wednesday of fatally shooting a New Kensington man after a fight outside a Pittsburgh skate shop and entertainment space.

Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Randal B. Todd court found Zahvair Palmer, 23, guilty of third-degree murder in the March 19, 2022, death of Adam Cloud, 29.

Palmer was also found guilty of two firearms counts during a nonjury trial. He was found not guilty on a robbery charge.

Sentencing is scheduled for June 4.

Palmer was charged with fatally shooting Cloud in the chest at the now-closed OneUp Skate Shop in the 1000 block of Freyburg Street in the city’s South Side Slopes neighborhood.

Cloud was performing on a stage inside the building on the night of the shooting, according to attorney Frank Walker, who represented Palmer.

Pittsburgh police and SWAT officers arrested Palmer two months after the shooting following a standoff outside a Homewood apartment that lasted several hours.

Prosecutors sought a first-degree murder charge, claiming Palmer had intent to rob a business and commit violence, Walker said. The attorney told TribLive Wednesday he was pleased with Wednesday’s results.

If found guilty of first-degree murder, Palmer would have faced a mandatory life sentence without parole. A third-degree murder charge could carry a sentence of up to 40 years in prison.

“It was a lot of nuance of the facts and a lot of nuance of the law,” Walker said. “Any time you’re able to obtain an acquittal on a first-or second-degree charge, that’s a good day.”

Walker said he does not know if Palmer plans to appeal the ruling.