Plymouth Man Charged With Murder in Road Rage Incident

PLYMOUTH (WBSM) — A Plymouth man is under arrest and charged with the fatal shooting of another man in an apparent road rage incident in a Plymouth parking lot Friday.

Plymouth County District Attorney Tim Cruz and Plymouth Police Chief Dana Flynn announced that David Jerome, 23, of Plymouth has been arrested and charged with murder and other offenses in the fatal shooting of Brent Berkeley, 41.

On October 25 at about 5:45 p.m., Plymouth Police received multiple 911 calls reporting a person had been shot in the Middle Street town parking lot. Police arrived and found Berkeley suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was transported to Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Plymouth, where he was pronounced deceased.

Witnesses at the scene identified Jerome as the suspect, and he was placed under arrest.

The investigation by Plymouth Police and Massachusetts State Police detectives assigned to the D.A.’s Office determined that Berkeley was driving a Jeep SUV and Jerome was driving a Toyota RAV4 and the two were involved in a minor traffic incident.

A physical altercation between the two then ensued before Jerome allegedly shot Berkeley. Various news reports suggested Berkeley had been shot in the face. Cruz and Flynn said Jerome’s 18-month-old son was in a car seat in his vehicle during the incident.

Jerome is charged with one count each of murder, discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a building, reckless endangerment of a child, improper storage of a firearm, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, improper storage of ammunition, and possession of a large capacity feeding device.

Jerome is scheduled to be arraigned Monday in Plymouth District Court. The investigation remains active and ongoing, the authorities said.

Jerome's Facebook page, which is no longer publicly accessible, featured numerous photos of him with assault-style weapons and videos of him shooting those weapons.

The incident happened right outside of Plymouth’s Speedwell Tavern, where Berkeley’s significant other works. Owner Jordan Chabot posted to the establishment’s Facebook page that the Speedwell would be closed Saturday and Sunday and reopen on Monday.

“There are no words to express how we feel about the tragedy that occurred last night. We are broken,” he wrote. “We will be closed today and tomorrow, then back to business Monday. This gives us the opportunity to let the temperature come down and gives us the ability to get back to our strongest selves so we can recover.”

He also said that all proceeds next Friday, November 1, at the Speedwell would go “to the family of the victims.”

“If you are a member of the community looking to show support through Speedwell, this is the day to do it,” he wrote. “More details will emerge as we recover and everyone will have a chance to let their energy be felt. We will start a fundraiser to those who are and are not able to make it.’

“We will donate every single dime raised on that day right to the family so finances are the last thing on their mind,” he wrote.

A GoFundMe page has also been created for Berkeley’s family.