Murder charges against a second man accused in a 2022 double shooting outside a South Louisville bar have been dismissed, more than four years after two men were gunned down in a parking lot. A judge accepted a prosecutor's motion to dismiss the indictment against 34-year-old Isaac Castellanos, according to reporting from WLKY.
Castellanos and 23-year-old David Morales were both arrested in connection with the deadly shooting at Hoops Grill and Sports Bar, according to WLKY. Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Erin Hartman said, as WLKY reported, that prosecutors should not proceed against the less culpable of the two men given what already happened in Morales's case. The dismissal effectively closes out prosecution against both men who had been charged in the killing, at least for now.
The shooting happened around 11 p.m. on April 14, 2022, outside Hoops Grill & Sports Bar, a neighborhood sports venue with indoor dining and an outdoor patio at 6733 Strawberry Lane in the Southland Park area, per WHAS11. Surveillance video reviewed by bar owner Dale Self showed two assailants park beside the victims' car, open the driver's door, and fire roughly 20 rounds in 20 seconds, according to WDRB. The gunmen also shot a fleeing passenger, then picked up their dropped shell casings before fleeing, WDRB reported. Patrons reportedly returned to the bar the following morning to support the business.
Victims Identified
The Jefferson County Coroner's Office identified the two men killed as 32-year-old local resident Haris Boskailo and 21-year-old Alden Fernandez, according to MundoNOW. Initial reports noted that police were uncertain whether the two victims knew each other, per the same outlet.
Louisville Metro Police arrested Morales in June 2023, more than a year after the shooting, charging him with two counts of complicity to murder along with complicity to tampering with physical evidence and receiving stolen property, according to WHAS11. His bond was set at $500,000, and he spent roughly two years in custody awaiting trial. Castellanos was not arrested until May 2025, more than three years after the killings, when police charged him with two counts of complicity to murder and one count of tampering with physical evidence, holding him on a $100,000 cash bond, per WHAS11.
Judge Walked Out After Discovery Failure
The case against Morales unraveled during a pre-trial hearing weeks before his scheduled trial, when Jefferson Circuit Court Judge Julie Kaelin revealed that prosecutors had withheld a recorded witness statement from Castellanos for 17 days, only handing it to the defense days before trial was set to begin, according to WDRB. Kaelin walked out of the courtroom and publicly admonished the Commonwealth's Attorney's office over the delay, which the station described as a potential act of gamesmanship. WLKY's reporting characterized the failure as prosecutors turning over a large amount of evidence to the defense just hours before trial.
The dismissal of Morales's case led to his release after two years behind bars. WLKY reported that the charges against both Morales and Castellanos were dismissed without prejudice, meaning prosecutors retain the option to bring the case back.
Why the Case Could Still Return
WLKY reported that charges against both men may be reinstated in the future.
For now, though, no one remains charged in the deaths of Boskailo and Fernandez.
