3 acquitted of Feltonville shoot-out

Three men who were filmed being beaten and kicked by Philadelphia police last year were found not guilty today on charges of attempted murder, aggravated assault and conspiracy.

Dwayne Dyches, 26; Brian Hall, 24; and Pete Hopkins, 20, were charged in a May 5, 2008, shoot-out in the city's Feltonville section in which three people were wounded.

The three men allegedly led police on a 21/2-mile chase that ended when police yanked them from Hall's Mercury Grand Marquis near Second and Pike Streets, then beat and kicked them as a Fox29 helicopter captured the scene on tape.

After the verdict was announced, the packed courtroom erupted in cheers from the defendants' supporters.

"We obviously pleased with the verdict. There were a lot of inconsistencies . . . and I'm glad the jury saw it that way," said the attorney for Hopkins, Mary T. Maran.

In closing arguments yesterday, Mary said the lone witness to the shoot-out gave conflicting reports that could not be trusted.

In addition, Maran said the "media frenzy" that resulted from the televised beating created a "major problem" for Philadelphia police that could be fixed only if all three men were prosecuted for attempted murder.

The prosecution's case hinged on the testimony of an undercover police officer who had staked out the corner of Fourth and Annsbury Streets in hope of making a drug bust.

Instead of a narcotics transaction, Officer Carlos Buitrago said, he witnessed Dyches, Hall, and Hopkins walk up to a group of men who congregated on the corner. Buitrago, who was hiding in a vehicle 50 feet away, said he watched as Hopkins pulled out a semiautomatic pistol and blasted the group with 15 shots.

The three men then ran back to a tan Mercury Marquis parked on Fourth Street and led police on the chase, authorities said, which ended with their beating.

Maran pointed out that there was no evidence linking the gun to her client. Police could find no fingerprints or DNA samples on the weapon after it was found 25 days later.