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Police said they don’t believe his gun was used in the shooting. “Those questions need to be answered and they will be answered over the days ahead,” Steinberg said.Ī 31-year-old man seen carrying a handgun immediately after the shooting was arrested Tuesday on a weapons charge. Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg questioned why the brothers were on the streets. He was denied parole last year after prosecutors said he “clearly has little regard for human life,” documents show.
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Smiley Martin was released from prison in February after serving about half of a 10-year prison sentence for beating a girlfriend. He did not enter a plea and his attorney said she would wait to see if prosecutors brought more serious charges before deciding whether to seek his release.īoth men have criminal records. His brother, Dandrae Martin, 26, was arrested as a “related suspect” and appeared briefly Tuesday in Sacramento Superior Court on a charge of being a convict carrying a loaded gun. He remained hospitalized and it wasn’t clear if he had an attorney who could speak for him. Smiley Martin faces charges of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and possession of a machine gun. At least two remained hospitalized with gunshot wounds. Ten people were wounded in addition to the Martin brothers. The three men killed were Sergio Harris, 38 Joshua Hoye-Lucchesi, 32 and De’vazia Turner, 29. The Sacramento County coroner identified the three women killed as Johntaya Alexander, 21 Melinda Davis, 57 and Yamile Martinez-Andrade, 21. Sunday as bars closed and patrons filled the streets. Martin and his brother were among those wounded in the gunfire that erupted about 2 a.m.
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The official was briefed on the investigation but was not authorized to publicly discuss details and spoke on condition of anonymity. They are also investigating whether a gun one of the brothers, Smiley Martin, 27, brandished in a video was used in the shooting, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. It had been converted to a weapon capable of automatic gunfire. Police were trying to determine if a stolen handgun found at the crime scene was used in the massacre. If these guys were white, this wouldn’t be considered gang related - not even for a minute.”Īuthorities credited witnesses who contributed nearly 200 videos, photos and other tips with helping the investigation. “If you looked at a map of gang homicides in the city - or any city - over time, you’d see the same areas lighting up - meaning that’s where they occur. He said gang shootings are more mundane and most occur in what are considered gang neighborhoods. “This idea that we’re going to put blame to one demographic of folks and blame them for the violence that ensued.”īill Sanders, a criminologist at Cal State LA, said he wanted to see more evidence the shooting was gang-related, a term police often use to drum up support. “That’s the narrative we don’t need at this particular time,” Accius said.
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He said people will see the photos of the Black women and men who were shot, assume they were in a gang and wonder why gang members are downtown. The large number of casualties was the result of high-capacity weapons in a crowded area, he said.īerry Accius, founder of Voice of the Youth who leads gun intervention and prevention programs and offered his services to counsel families who lost loved ones in the shooting, criticized police for characterizing the crime as gang-related, which he said will lead some to “think Black people.” “If you see a rival gang member and you’re going to attack them, it doesn’t matter where they are.” “If rival gang members see each other it doesn’t matter if they’re in the Capitol of the United States of America,” Brown said. The location of the Sacramento shooting – in a bustling area of watering holes near the entertainment district - was incidental to whatever fueled the fight. Gregory Chris Brown, a criminal justice professor at California State University, Fullerton, said gangs often target rivals in drive-by shootings with fewer victims, though innocent bystanders are sometimes also struck. Digital Replica Edition Home Page Close Menu