0
0
On December 6, 2002, Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity hosted a party at Club Voodoo in Columbia, South Carolina. During the party, a confrontation between rival gangs, the Bloods and the Crips, occurred.
Appellant, who conceded he was affiliated with the Bloods, and Smalls, a member of the Crips, confronted each other.
Around 2:00 a.m. on December 7, the party ended. Ryan Brooks retrieved a semi-automatic pistol from his car to protect himself and Appellant retrieved a pistol from his car for protection while his friends counted the money collected at the door that night.
Derrick Watson testified around 2:00 a.m. Smalls asked him for a gun, but Watson did not have one.
Brooks saw Appellant and Smalls talking in the club. He testified Appellant reached towards his own waist and Smalls rushed Appellant; the two men struggled over Appellant’s pistol. During the struggle, the pistol was pointed towards Brooks, who fired his own gun and shot Smalls.
After firing his weapon, Brooks ran out of the club and heard more gunshots.
Marcus Jones heard the first gunshot and saw the victim on the ground. He then saw two more shots and described the gunfire as “coming straight down.” Jones testified the victim did not appear to have a gun and the gunman did not appear to be in danger. He later identified Appellant as the gunman.
Investigator James Richardson was qualified as an expert in gangs and gang activity. Richardson testified about the history of the Bloods and the Crips, gang activities in Columbia, gang clothing, and gang hand signals. During direct examination, Richardson testified Appellant was a member of the Bloods and was a supreme or officer within the gang.
The trial judge overruled defense counsel’s objection to the hearsay testimony that Appellant was an officer in the Bloods.
On cross-examination, Richardson conceded he did not know Appellant and that his testimony regarding Appellant was based on information from informants and not on his own personal knowledge.
The State presented the following evidence seized from Appellant’s apartment as part of its theory that Appellant was a member of the Bloods: photographs of men, including Appellant, making Blood hand signals and wearing Blood colors; a gang code book; red clothing and hats; bullet-proof vests; and a document containing a pledge of allegiance to the United Blood Nation.
The State of South Carolina v. Price. Opinion No. 26139. Appeal From Richland County. Reginald I. Lloyd, Circuit Court Judge. Heard March 22, 2006. Filed April 17, 2006
Average Rating