One group came to Oakland for drinking and dining, another for 'bipping' and boosting. It ended in murder.

"Patrick Rushing, 35, was convicted of second-degree murder with an enhancement for intentional discharge of a gun in the Feb. 26, 2023 killing of 44-year-old Phoutsamay "Phil" Norawong. The prelude to murder started months earlier, with a seemingly unrelated event: Rushing fronted about four pounds of marijuana to a man named Terrance Rose, 35, with the expectation he'd be paid back later. But Rose subsequently failed a drug test while on probation for a federal fentanyl and gun possession case, and ended up doing a stint in jail for it, court records show."

"Rose would later testify that when he got out of jail, Rushing told Rose he still owed Rushing thousands of dollars for the marijuana, and proposed that on Feb. 25, 2023 they go out "bipping" - slang for car burglarizing - in Oakland to make up for it. Rushing was the alleged burglary, while Rose was his driver, and Rose's cousin reportedly tagged along for the ride. "He was like, 'You're just gonna be the driver. You don't have to worry about nothing,' you know," Rose testified at the 2024 preliminary hearing."

"That same night, Norawong and two friends went barhopping around Oakland's Chinatown neighborhood, and ended up coming across Rushing. Among the small group of longtime friends was a man known as "Ricky" who had a gun on him and was so drunk he claimed he couldn't remember exactly what transpired. Their third friend testified that he and Rushing began to yell and swear at each other and that Ricky pulled up his shirt to show his gun after Rushing accosted them and demanded property."

Patrick Rushing, 35, was convicted of second-degree murder with an enhancement for intentional discharge of a gun in the Feb. 26, 2023 killing of 44-year-old Phoutsamay "Phil" Norawong. Rushing had fronted about four pounds of marijuana to Terrance Rose, who later failed a probation drug test, served time, and owed money. Rushing recruited Rose to burglarize cars ("bipping") in Oakland to recoup the debt, with Rose driving and a cousin tagging along. Norawong and two friends encountered Rushing’s group while barhopping in Chinatown; an altercation escalated, a gun was displayed, and Norawong was killed. Rose testified under a plea deal.

Read at The Mercury News