Brooklyn Center man found guilty in shooting near Target Field

A jury has found a Brooklyn Center man guilty of shooting and wounding two men last spring outside Target Field in Minneapolis.

James Davis, 28, was convicted Monday in Hennepin County District Court of two counts of attempted murder for the benefit of a gang for shooting Kibbie Walker and Cortez Blakemore as they left their stadium cleaning jobs on April 12.

"This was a difficult case because the main victim was not cooperative and did not want to say who shot him," Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said in a prepared statement.

In his closing arguments Friday, Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Thad Tudor noted that Walker, despite being shot in the chest and the abdomen, did not help on the witness stand.

"You saw Kibbie Walker try to tank this case," Tudor said. "He said, 'I don't know who shot me.' This is the 'don't snitch' crowd."

According to the criminal complaint, Walker and Blakemore were leaving the stadium about 3 a.m. As they were walking out of the left-field gate, three men in hooded sweatshirts came up to them and began shooting.

Tudor said that while Walker was not helpful on the witness stand, his recorded interview with police was informative, including when he picked Davis out of a photo lineup.

The shooting was part of a feud between two gangs, authorities say. Davis is a member of the 1-9s and Walker is a member of the Taliban. Walker admitted to police that he had made a YouTube video mocking the shooting death of 1-9s leader Tyrone Washington, angering members of that gang.

Davis will be sentenced March 19.

Walker also will be sentenced next month. In December, he pleaded guilty to aggravated assault for shooting at a car in downtown Minneapolis on April 30.

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