On the afternoon of October 7, 2024, Devin Barstow, an 18-year-old White male from Greece, New York, was fatally shot in Rochester. The shooting occurred around 4 p.m. in the rear parking lot of Charles T. Lunsford School No. 19 on Seward Street. Authorities later stated that Barstow had no known connection to the school or its adjacent recreation center.
After being shot multiple times, Barstow ran to the porch of a vacant house at 286 Flint Street, where he collapsed. About two hours later, around 6 p.m., a passerby saw him unresponsive and called 911. Emergency responders arrived and pronounced him dead at the scene. Barstow’s death marked the 42nd homicide in the city of Rochester for 2024.
In January 2025, an indictment was unsealed charging a teenager, Ramell Griffin, with second-degree murder, first-degree assault, and criminal possession of a weapon in connection with the killing.
The Monroe County District Attorney's Office stated that investigators determined Griffin had targeted Barstow and shot him during an argument.
On January 12, 2026, Griffin, then 17, pleaded guilty in Monroe County Court to first-degree manslaughter just as his jury trial was set to begin. “On that October evening, Ramell set in motion an irreversible outcome, leading to the death of Devin Barstow,” Monroe County District Attorney Brian Green said in a statement. He acknowledged the Barstow family’s strength and cooperation, adding, “I sincerely hope that today’s outcome provides them with a sense of justice and peace, knowing that the person responsible for taking their loved one’s life has been held accountable.”
Griffin is scheduled to be sentenced on March 6, 2026. He faces an expected sentence of 17 to 19 years in state prison and five years of post-release supervision. The case's status as of the guilty plea in January 2026 is that the person responsible has been convicted and is awaiting sentencing.
