Multnomah County District Attorney Rod Underhill announced 28-year-old Ajon Webster received a 20 year prison sentence for the homicide of Adrian Berg.
On August 31, 2018, Webster appeared before Multnomah County Circuit Court Judge Eric J. Bergstrom and pleaded guilty to one count each of manslaughter in the first degree and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Ernastine Rutherford, Mr. Berg’s mother, who participated in Friday’s sentencing hearing via phone described the pain of losing her son. Ms. Rutherford told the Court her entire family “misses him so much.”
This investigation began when officers with the Gresham Police Department responded to Pat Pfeifer Park on August 6, 2017 on reports of a shooting. Upon arrival, officers located Berg, 32, suffering from critical injuries. He was taken by ambulance to a local hospital but died during transport. An autopsy determined his death to be homicide.
During the investigation, law enforcement learned that Mr. Berg was at the park attending a picnic when Webster showed up. There was a verbal altercation between the two men. Mr. Berg asked the defendant to leave the park due to the fact that there were numerous children present and because he didn’t want Webster to disrupt those who had gathered. The verbal altercation between Mr. Berg and Webster continued. Shortly thereafter, law enforcement learned Webster obtained a .45 caliber handgun from a nearby parked vehicle and returned to the park and shot Mr. Berg multiple times at close range.
Webster fled the scene, and eventually the state, but was apprehended by the United States Marshals Service.
Senior Multnomah County Deputy District Attorney Brian Davidson, who prosecuted this case, said at Friday hearing that Mr. Berg was “someone who had a lot of loved ones” and that he was “truly an innocent victim.” Davidson said that while at the park Mr. Berg was protecting a female from Webster who was being aggressive towards her and others.
Webster apologized to the Berg family and said he was prepared to face the consequences of his actions.
This case was investigated by the Gresham Police Department and the Multnomah County East Major Crimes Team.
Source: Multnomah County District Attorney