Posted on 5/28/2005, 10:48:31 PM by MisterX
Edited on 5/28/2005, 11:29:11 PM by Sidebar Moderator. [history]
ALBANY -- After apologizing for killing a neighbor, saying he was just protecting his family, a city man was sentenced Friday to 15 years in prison.
Jermaine Boyd, 29, lived on the second-floor of 301 First St. when he fired a shotgun out the window at two men on the street Dec. 8 after shots were fired at him.
He told police he had a confrontation with the men over drug activity in the building.
In the shootout, Emmanuel "Mickey" Albea, 20, was hit in the chest with two blasts from Boyd's shotgun and died on the sidewalk. Albea was Boyd's upstairs neighbor.
A grand jury turned aside a murder charge and indicted Boyd for manslaughter, believing he killed Albea in the heat of the confrontation and after being taunted by the men. The incident started when Boyd witnessed a crack deal on his front stoop.
Boyd subsequently pleaded guilty to attempted manslaughter.
In court, Assistant District Attorney Brian Farley told County Judge Thomas A. Breslin he took issue with a comment Boyd made to a probation officer who prepared a pre-sentence report.
"He said he was not aiming at anyone when he was shooting," Farley said. "I believe he was aiming because the recoil from the shotgun cut his lip, which meant he had the gun up to his face."
Deputy Public Defender Peter Lynch told the court that his client acted under extreme emotional disturbance.
In a lengthy plea for leniency, Boyd said he was trying to protect his family. He said he didn't know which of the two men fired at him from the street.
The defendant said he was sorry Albea was dead, and he never meant to harm him.
"I'm not a bad guy," Boyd told Breslin. "It's hard to say anything. I could have been wrong. I could have been right. Who's to say? I ain't got the money to go to trial, so I've got to take what I can."
The judge fired back. "You have one of the best trial lawyers in this area: Mr. Lynch. He puts his all in every case.
"The bottom line is, your actions caused someone to die," Breslin said.
Governor Pataki should immediately issue a pardon.
The judge said he had one of the best lawyers in the area representing him. So why'd he plead guilty with 15 hanging over him?
Odds are there are more where the guy who got shot came from. He might feel he's safer in jail than back in that neighborhood.
Little more than shooting back...
It really is a shame and it almost brought tears to my eyes; when I was up in Albany several days ago, you can see almost everywhere what were once beautiful brownstones that now lie vacant, gutted, and burned out probably due to drug activity.
The mayor (and his contender) both proclaim their intention of bringing back Albany from hard times...but this is either the usual empty rhetorical pre election B.S. or they don't have a clue as to how to accomplish this in any meaningful way.
ALBANY -- After apologizing for killing a neighbor, saying he was just protecting his family, a city man was sentenced Friday to 15 years in prison. Jermaine Boyd, 29, lived on the second-floor of 301 First St. when he fired a shotgun out the window at two men on the street Dec. 8 after shots were fired at him.
He told police he had a confrontation with the men over drug activity in the building. In the shootout, Emmanuel "Mickey" Albea, 20, was hit in the chest with two blasts from Boyd's shotgun and died on the sidewalk. Albea was Boyd's upstairs neighbor.
A grand jury turned aside a murder charge and indicted Boyd for manslaughter, believing he killed Albea in the heat of the confrontation and after being taunted by the men. The incident started when Boyd witnessed a crack deal on his front stoop. Boyd subsequently pleaded guilty to attempted manslaughter.
In court, Assistant District Attorney Brian Farley told County Judge Thomas A. Breslin he took issue with a comment Boyd made to a probation officer who prepared a pre-sentence report. "He said he was not aiming at anyone when he was shooting," Farley said. "I believe he was aiming because the recoil from the shotgun cut his lip, which meant he had the gun up to his face."
Deputy Public Defender Peter Lynch told the court that his client acted under extreme emotional disturbance. In a lengthy plea for leniency, Boyd said he was trying to protect his family. He said he didn't know which of the two men fired at him from the street. The defendant said he was sorry Albea was dead, and he never meant to harm him. ...
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Thank you.
I think the Judge should be the one setenced for aiding criminal activity, not this man that was simply protecting his family. Sad, very sad.
This isn't sad, it's outrageous. Where were the 15 year sentences for the crack dealing thugs ruining this man's neighborhood? The justice system was nowhere to be seen until someone stood up to defend himself.
Schapelle Corby's piece of bad justice was front page news around the world. Boyd's piece is every bit as bad, probably worse because you'd expect better from New York than thirdworldistan, and nobody will even hear about it. A poor black man with a public defender just isn't newsworthy.
Guess they couldn't find any bullets or shell casings from the guys who supposedly shot at him.
He won't. The politicians all kiss the asses of the judges as if they are powerless.
WTF????This statement makes this story smell to high heaven.
Just shows that Farley doesn't know jack about shooting and or is grasping at straws. If he'd been aiming he'd had the butt in his shoulder properly and not gotten his face bit.
He did hit the guy twice from a second floor window - to me that implies aiming.
It would be nice if the story mentioned whether or not there was any evidence that the dead guy had been involved in the original shooting, or in the drug activity...
Liberalism is a mental disorder.
Did it occur to you that Albea is one of the kids on the bottom of the food chain?
Of course it occurred to me - that's why I said the article was incomplete...
...and you guys are happy.
You're jumping to conclusions here (or perhaps responding to the wrong guy) - my point was that it was pretty likely that the shots were aimed and that the article did not make clear if the killing was justified. If the facts as are you present, especially the part about the bullets in the apartment wall, then I agree that this guy has been mistreated...
I would love to see the judge in this case forced to live in Mr. Boyd's crime infested neighborhood for a few years and then see what he thinks about the "crime" of defending one's self from the packs of 2-legged wild animals who rule that type neighborhood as their own little fiefdom. I have a suspicion that he would be in the market for a firearm of some kind before the end of his 1st month there.
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