A North Side man who, in 2019, unintentionally shot his stepbrother during a melee between two groups of teens following the July 4 fireworks in Pittsburgh, pleaded guilty Thursday to third-degree murder.

Camerin Caldwell, 20, will be sentenced by Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Susan Evashavik DiLucente on June 23. He pleaded guilty in the death of his stepbrother, Keyari Wynn, who was 16, and to aggravated assault for shooting another teen multiple times that same night.

Wynn was shot once in the head and was left with permanent brain damage requiring constant care. He remained nonverbal and on a ventilator and feeding tube until his death on May 14, 2021, according to Assistant District Attorney Alison Bragle.

The shooting that night - as thousands of people were leaving the July 4 celebration - raised concerns amid law enforcement, business owners and community leaders about Downtown safety and how to police the area.

Bragle told the court that Caldwell was among two groups at Point State Park that evening that had a physical altercation as the fireworks display was ending. The groups, AFN and Choppa Boys, were rival gangs who released YouTube music videos against each other, she said.

After the fight at Point State Park, the groups separated, Bragle said, but met back up at Agnes Katz Plaza in the 700 block of Penn Avenue around 11 p.m.

An argument ensued before a physical fight broke out. Video surveillance in the area captured a male wearing a white tank top and jean shorts pull out a gun and start firing. Caldwell’s mother and stepfather later identified him in the video. Investigators found eight shell casings in the area from a 9 mm handgun, which was found in a nearby dumpster.

The gun was registered to another one of Caldwell’s stepbrothers, Bragle said.

In addition to Wynn, Kenneth Green, 18, was shot six times. Green told police that he had been friends with Caldwell, and that they hung out together in ninth grade before growing apart.

That night, Bragle said, Green told police that he and Caldwell got into a fistfight, before he later saw Caldwell firing.

As a result of his injuries, Green’s left leg was amputated above the knee, and he has had multiple surgeries. He also sustained severe damage to his colon and kidneys, Bragle said.

During Thursday’s hearing, defense attorney Milt Raiford noted that Caldwell turned himself in to Pittsburgh police 11 days after the shooting — accompanied by his mother and several other relatives.

Those same people were in court, the attorney said.

“It’s obviously a tragic incident that the family will never overcome,” Raiford told the judge. “They want Camerin to know we’re all suffering and grieving together.”

As Caldwell was led from the courtroom by sheriff’s deputies, loved ones said, “Love you, Cam.” “Miss you.”

After the hearing, Raiford bemoaned the prevalence of guns in society, and that some young people think that violence solves everything.

“Those kids were just out of control that day,” Raiford said. “Nobody intends to shoot his brother in the head.”

Third-degree murder carries a maximum prison term of 20 to 40 years.

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