“I Love You Bro” Say Alleged Phoenixville Shooters After Hearing

James “Mack” Brown, 18, the Phoenixville man who was in an apparent drug deal gone awry, took the stand to face his alleged shooter and his co-conspirator at a preliminary hearing on Thursday, The Mercury is reporting.

Brown, who admitted he didn’t remember much because he was “high” at the time of the crime, testified that he got in a car the afternoon of the shooting with Shawn Nafeese Duell, 20, and Garrett Sterner, 19, with the intention of finding them marijuana. It soon became clear to him that wasn’t Duell or Sterner’s plan.

After Duell and Sterner allegedly exchanged text messages outlining a plan to rob Brown, Sterner, the driver, pulled the car over in the parking lot of the . Brown said Sterner leaned against the door, preventing him from leaving, while Duell drew a handgun and demanded his backpack.

Brown said he refused, which led to a tussle that ultimately resulted in, he says, Duell shooting him in the groin.  

District Judge Theodore P. Michaels, after the testimony, decided Duell and Sterner would be tried for all charges.

According to The Mercury, as Duell left the courtroom he looked back at Sterner told him he loved him.

“I love you, bro,” Sterner replied.

Read the full story here.