A man was killed outside a store in Trenton Sunday. (Penny Ray - Trentonian)

A man was shot and killed Sunday afternoon, marking the third murder to occur in the capital city this weekend.

The man was shot in the head outside a store located in the 900 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard a little before noon. He was later pronounced dead at the hospital.

Residents on the block said they were inside their homes at the time of the shooting, and no one could provide details of what happened just prior to the incident. But one man said the store attracts a lot of foot traffic, which compounds with the open-air drug activity that's rampant on MLK.

"I’ve lived in the neighborhood all my life and the Boulevard has a drug problem," a man who asked to remain anonymous said.

Police say the MLK shooting appears to be an isolated incident not connected to the shootings in South Trenton that claimed two lives on Friday night and Saturday morning.

Trenton Police Director Ernest Parrey Jr. said Sunday that "it's very disappointing" to learn about another capital city homicide less than 24 hours after community leaders spoke about peace in the very same neighborhood where the murder occurred.

"We're putting in double time working on this violent crime strategy," Parrey said. "We're working with our law enforcement partners and the faith-based community as we did yesterday. Now we have a homicide right in one of the areas where we were pleading to the public. So, the question now becomes: is the public going to answer the call? The police department and the mayor can't do this alone. The community knows who did this. Are they willing to step up and say 'We're not going to have this in our neighborhood; we're not going to subject our children to this?'"

One of the concerns community activists and residents speak about most often is the lack of police walking in Trenton's high-crime neighborhoods. Residents wonder why state police and sheriff's officers don't focus on the areas near schools and downtown while TPD officers walk beats in the high-crime neighborhoods such as MLK, Lamberton Street, Stuyvesant Avenue, Oakland and Hoffman, Prospect Village and the North 25 Housing complex.

"We don't discuss deployment efforts, but I can tell you we work hand-in-hand with New Jersey State Police," Parrey said. "We have areas in the city where we conduct strategic patrols. Unfortunately, an incident like this where someone wanders out of their home with malice in their heart, then walks to a building and takes a life, is a crime that's not suppressible."

This is a developing story.

A pedestrian was struck and killed by a motorist Sunday night and police are searching for the driver.

This is the second hit-and-run accident to occur in Trenton this year.

Officials say a vehicle struck a 61-year-old man in the 400 block of Chambers Street around 10:20 p.m. Sunday.

“The victim was in the roadway when a vehicle struck him and continued without stopping,” Lt. Stephen Varn said.

Officials say the victim was in the middle of the westbound lane when the vehicle, which was traveling west, struck him.

The victim suffered severe injuries and later died at the hospital.

If the driver of the vehicle is apprehended, he or she will likely be charged with death by auto because they fled the scene after the accident.

According to the New Jersey State Police Uniform Crime Reporting Unit, vehicular homicides are considered manslaughter and are, therefore, not reported as a homicide statistic.

The Trentonian, however, includes death by auto and justifiable police shootings in its yearly homicide count.

Earlier this year, 39-year-old Lea Pringle was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver in the 600 block of North Olden Avenue. A 17-year-old unlicensed city girl was arrested last week and charged with death by auto and related offenses in connection with Pringle’s death.

Anyone with information about Sunday’s fatal hit-and-run is asked to call police at 609-989-4155.

Tyrone King

Tyrone “Big Face” King was known by friends and family as a “good dude.”

Tragically — like a far too common theme recently in the capital city — King was the victim of gun violence this past weekend.

The 51-year-old Ewing resident was fatally shot Sunday outside a store on the 900 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard about 20 minutes before noon. King was pronounced dead a short time later at Capital Health Regional Medical Center, Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office spokeswoman Casey DeBlasio said Monday in an email.

Police say the MLK shooting appears to be an isolated incident not connected to the shootings in South Trenton that claimed two lives on Friday night and Saturday morning.

“At this point, it appears the victim was involved in a confrontation with another individual who was inside a vehicle,” Lt. Stephen Varn said about the Sunday murder. “Shots were fired from the vehicle and the suspect drove away.”

King, who grew up in North Trenton, was remembered on social media as a “humble person” and a “very good friend.”

King’s death capped an extremely violent weekend in Trenton.

The deadly weekend began with the murder of 43-year-old Anthony Flowers, who was gunned down on Lamberton Street Friday night. Early Saturday morning, 40-year-old Shawn Harrell was murdered near the intersection of Power and Bridge streets.

Residents expressed sadness and shock over the bloodshed.

“It’s a damn shame people will be hostages in their own homes,” one resident wrote on Facebook. “You can’t walk the streets without watching your back.”

Another man wrote on social media that the city has “really gone to s**t.”

So far this year, 20 people have been killed in Trenton, which includes two hit-and-run deaths.

The Mercer County Homicide Task Force is investigating all three murders. No arrests have been made at this time. Anyone with information about the slayings is asked to call (609) 989-6406. Or call the Trenton Police Confidential Tip Line at (609) 989-3663.

Trentonian staff writer Penny Ray contributed to this report

The pedestrian who was killed by a motorist Sunday night has been identified as 61-year-old Rodney Taylor.

A vehicle struck Taylor in the 400 block of Chambers Street around 10:20 p.m. Sunday.

Officials say the victim was in the middle of the westbound lane when the vehicle, which was traveling west, struck him.

“The victim was in the roadway when a vehicle struck him and continued without stopping,” Lt. Stephen Varn said.

Taylor suffered severe injuries and later died at the hospital.

This is the second fatal hit-and-run accident to occur in Trenton this year.

In March, 39-year-old Lea Pringle was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver in the 600 block of North Olden Avenue. A 17-year-old unlicensed city girl was arrested last week and charged with death by auto and related offenses in connection with Pringle’s death.

Anyone with information about Sunday’s fatal hit-and-run is asked to call police at 609-989-4155.

Two men who played a role in the 2015 shooting death of 19-year-old Elvin Kimble have been sentenced to state prison after pleading guilty to downgraded criminal offenses.

Originally arrested on heavy murder charges, Gary Spears, 35, of Trenton, pleaded guilty to first-degree aggravated manslaughter and has been sentenced to 10 years of incarceration while co-defendant Jermaine Johnson, 41, of Ewing, pleaded guilty to third-degree hindering prosecution and has been sentenced to five years behind bars.

Gary Spears (left) and Jermaine Johnson

Kimble suffered a fatal gunshot wound to the back during the early morning hours of Nov. 24, 2015. Prior to the shooting, Kimble was seen earlier in the night allegedly breaking into Johnson’s vehicle. Johnson gave chase and Kimble allegedly fired in his direction. Johnson then recruited the help of Spears to retaliate, and Spears fired the shot that ended Kimble’s life, according to statements prosecutors previously made in the case.

Elvin Kimble

On the date of the slaying, police about 12:40 a.m. responded to the area of Chestnut Avenue and Rusling Street on a report of shots fired and found evidence of a gunfight but no evidence of a homicide. Police later returned to that same area about 6:20 a.m. and then found Kimble’s dead body lying between a fence and a parked car in the city’s Chambersburg neighborhood.

The slain Kimble was reportedly wearing a ski mask and still had a gun in his hand when police found him slumped over near a van on the 700 block of Division Street.

The Mercer County Homicide Task Force and a U.S. Marshals regional task force arrested Spears and Johnson on Jan. 15, 2016, charging them with first-degree murder and weapons offenses in connection with the shooting death of Kimble.

Both men were being held at the Mercer County Correction Center on $1 million cash bail and got indicted in October 2016 on murder charges. If they had taken their case to trial and got convicted on first-degree murder, they would have been hit with 30 to 75 years in prison.

Rather than fight the charges in a court of law, Spears and Johnson admitted their roles in the grisly retaliation slaying of Kimble.

Spears confessed to being the triggerman responsible for Kimble’s death. He pleaded guilty to the downgraded charge of first-degree aggravated manslaughter on July 17 before Judge Robert Bingham II and had his other charges dismissed Sept. 15 after Bingham sentenced him to 10 years of incarceration.

Johnson pleaded guilty before Judge Bingham on July 24 to a one-count accusation charging him with third-degree hindering apprehension or prosecution by giving false information to a law-enforcement officer. Bingham lowered Johnson’s bail to 10 percent of $50,000 cash bail on July 24 after Johnson pleaded guilty. Bingham eventually sentenced Johnson to five years of incarceration on Sept. 15, at which time the state dismissed the murder charges and weapons offenses against him.

Mercer County Assistant Prosecutor Tim Ward was the prosecutor in the case, Spears was represented by pool attorney George B. Somers Jr. and Johnson was represented by public defender Jessica Lyons.

Convicted murderer Randy K. Washington did not want to witness justice being served on Friday when Mercer County Superior Court Judge Darlene Pereksta sentenced him to 70 years of incarceration for stalking, shooting and killing 64-year-old Silas Johnson.

Randy Kareem Washington

Pereksta sentenced Washington in absentia to serve 85 percent of his term — nearly 60 years behind bars — before he can become eligible for parole.

The sentence was consistent with what prosecutors recommended, although Johnson’s family members wanted Washington to get hammered with the maximum penalty of life imprisonment without parole, which New Jersey state law defines as 75 years of incarceration.

Pereksta described Washington as “dangerous” and said he “has shown no remorse despite what appears to be significant evidence against him.”

Washington, 36, of Trenton, premeditated a plan to ambush Johnson on the morning of Oct. 29, 2014, when both of them were riding aboard a River LINE train that was making its way into Trenton.

Shortly after both men got off the train, Washington grabbed Johnson, threw him to the ground, engaged in a struggle with the victim and then fired two lethal shots into Johnson about 10:12 a.m. Washington fled from the scene, but police tracked him down and arrested him later that morning for the murder.

One bullet ripped through Johnson’s left thigh and the other one struck him in the torso, traveled through his body, pierced his heart and tore his aorta. He died from loss of too much blood, according to a medical examiner’s report cited by prosecutors.

Washington pleaded not guilty and took his case to trial, which ended July 6 with a jury finding him guilty of first-degree murder, weapons offenses and resisting arrest. The murderer declined to attend his sentencing hearing on Friday despite having the option to appear via video link. He has not physically or electronically appeared in court ever since he allegedly attacked his former defense attorney Jessica Lyons in Pereksta’s courtroom on June 29.

Washington has a mile-long rap sheet comprising six juvenile adjudications, nine municipal court convictions and nine upper-court convictions that include previous violent offenses, according to Pereksta, who said her sentencing of Washington to seven decades of imprisonment was “appropriate” and “just.”

“My condolences for your loss,” Pereksta said to Johnson’s family members who were in attendance.

Johnson was a beloved grandfather and uncle who would occasionally make trips up and down the state on NJ Transit’s River LINE light-rail train. Three of Johnson’s family members, including his son, spoke at Friday’s sentencing hearing.

“Today, justice will be finally served for a man who coldheartedly shot and murdered my dad,” Silas K. Greene said. “Randy stalked my dad. … He fought him and then shot him more than once.”

Two of Johnson’s nieces also spoke at the sentencing and described Washington as a “danger to civilization, a true menace to society” and a “bad person.”

Defense attorney Edward Hesketh has been entered as Washington’s new lawyer as of July 12. Hesketh did not say much at Friday’s sentencing but suggested that his client intends to file a timely appeal to his murder conviction.

“This truly was the most senseless murder that didn’t need to happen,” Mercer County Assistant Prosecutor Stacey Geurds said, adding that Washington “deserves to be punished and kept away” for murdering Johnson in cold blood.

Washington has several additional criminal matters pending before state Superior Court, including another homicide case. In addition to murdering Johnson near the intersection of Market Street and the Route 1 overpass in Trenton, the state also accuses Washington of murdering George Jamison, 43, who was shot and killed July 30, 2014, while sitting on a bus stop bench in the 7.5-square-mile capital city of Trenton.

In addition to being sentenced to 70 years of incarceration for first-degree murder, Washington on Friday received a 10-year concurrent sentence for unlawful possession of a handgun and a five-year concurrent sentence for resisting arrest. He has also been awarded 1,059 days of jail credit for being incarcerated at the Mercer County Correction Center from Oct. 29, 2014, through Sept. 21, 2017, but he still must serve well over 50 years behind bars if his conviction remains upheld.

Convicted murderer Randy K. Washington has filed a federal lawsuit against Mercer County sheriff’s officers and corrections officers, alleging they subjected him to “cruel and unusual punishment” and failed to provide him with timely medical treatment after he attacked his former lawyer in court.

Randy K. Washington

“Now on Thursday, June 29, 2017, I hit my attorney, but when I hit her, I did not advance toward her, I just waited for the sheriff to come handcuff me,” Washington says in his lawsuit filed Sept. 19. He then accuses the sheriff’s officers of tackling him on a table, slamming him to the ground and breaking a bone in his hand.

“I did not receive treatment until about six weeks after it was noted my hand was broken,” Washington says in his lawsuit, “causing further psychological harm from the pain and mental anguish, emotional distress caused by insomnia from disputes with prison officers about pain medication, violating my Eighth Amendment rights.”

More than a lawsuit, the litigation is effectively a written confession of Washington admitting he assaulted his former defense attorney Jessica Lyons in Mercer County Superior Court Judge Darlene Pereksta’s courtroom on June 29.

Washington, 36, of Trenton, was on trial for stalking, shooting and killing 64-year-old Silas Johnson in Trenton on Oct. 29, 2014. A jury on July 6 found Washington guilty of first-degree murder, weapons offenses and resisting arrest.

Pereksta earlier this month sentenced Washington to 70 years of imprisonment. He is currently incarcerated at New Jersey State Prison in Trenton and is scheduled to be released via parole on April 27, 2074, according to the New Jersey Department of Corrections.

For a convicted murderer who has expressed no remorse for slaying a 64-year-old grandfather, Washington in his litigation recognizes that unjustified force against another individual is unacceptable by the norms of human decency.

“Our society places great value on human life and on the right of every person to be free from offensive physical contact by another,” Washington says. “Consequently, the use of force by one individual against another is frowned upon. For this reason, force is permissible only when all non-force alternatives have failed.”

Washington filed his lawsuit against several Mercer County corrections officers, including Sgt. Timothy Friel, Lt. Chris Zegarski and Warden Charles Ellis, and he also filed suit against unnamed Mercer County sheriff’s officers.

“I do not know the Sheriff Deputy’s name,” Washington concedes in his litigation, apparently referring to one of the officers who apprehended him in court. The whole incident of Washington attacking his lawyer and getting thoroughly subdued by multiple sheriff’s officers is recorded on the courtroom camera and hallway cameras, he said.

Washington has a mile-long rap sheet comprising six juvenile adjudications, nine municipal court convictions and nine upper-court convictions that include previous violent offenses, according to Pereksta, who said her Sept. 22 sentencing of Washington to seven decades of imprisonment was “appropriate” and “just.”

In addition to being sentenced to 70 years of incarceration for first-degree murder, Washington also received a 10-year concurrent sentence for unlawful possession of a handgun and a five-year concurrent sentence for resisting arrest. He has been awarded 1,059 days of jail credit for being incarcerated at the Mercer County Correction Center from Oct. 29, 2014, through Sept. 21, 2017.

Washington has several additional criminal matters pending before state Superior Court, including another homicide case. In addition to murdering Johnson near the intersection of Market Street and the Route 1 overpass in Trenton, the state also accuses Washington of murdering George Jamison, 43, who was shot and killed July 30, 2014, while sitting on a bus stop bench in the 7.5-square-mile capital city of Trenton.

Mercer County has a policy to not comment on pending litigation.

A 17-year-old unlicensed driver has been arrested in connection with the March 7 hit-and-run homicide of 39-year-old Lea Pringle.

Lea Pringle (Facebook photo)

The teenage city girl was charged Thursday with death by auto and related offenses and remanded to the Middlesex County Juvenile Detention Center, according to Trenton Police, who said the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office will determine whether the defendant is tried as a juvenile or an adult.

The unlicensed teen driver is accused of striking the pedestrian about 12:30 a.m. March 7 in the 600 block of North Olden Avenue, just outside of Benny’s bar. Pringle later died at the hospital. She was a Bucks County resident of Yardley, Pennsylvania.

Trenton Police Detective Craig Kirk and Detective Sgt. Bethesda Stokes are the investigating officers who solved the fatal hit-and-run case.

According to the New Jersey State Police Uniform Crime Reporting Unit, vehicular homicides are considered manslaughter and are, therefore, not reported as a homicide statistic. The Trentonian, however, includes death by auto and justifiable police shootings in its yearly homicide count.

The area where Pringle was struck is said to be rife with reckless or careless drivers who speed through the city’s East Trenton neighborhood. Several hours after the vehicular homicide incident occurred, a man who identified himself as the manager of Benny’s said motorists continually speed through the area, which consists of residential housing on both sides of the street, and regularly has several cars parked outside of homes.

A city woman, Ivelisse Bassat, was arrested earlier this year on allegations she recklessly crashed into a pedestrian while driving drunk on the 600 block of North Olden Avenue. The 30-year-old male victim was struck about 2 a.m. March 5. The crash pinned the victim between two vehicles near Benny’s bar, causing his leg to be severed from his body. He suffered major injuries but survived.

Staff writer Penny Ray contributed to this report.

TRENTON >> Talaya Greenfield might finally know who killed her son.

Talaya Greenfield grasps a portrait of her son, taken when he was young boy. (Isaac Avilucea - The Trentonian)

Sworn court papers filed this month in the ongoing lawsuit the Trenton woman brought against the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office and city police last year suggest authorities are close to making arrests.

James Scott, an assistant prosecutor who heads the homicide unit, said in a certification there are “potentially identifiable suspects” in the murder of Jamer Greenfield, who was gunned down in Trenton in July 2014.

The unsolved case has dragged on for more than three years but is drawing to a close as the county homicide task force appears close to nabbing its targets.

“It is necessary for the MHTF to conduct additional interviews before the case will be in a position for review and potential issuance of arrest warrants and subsequent presentation to a grand jury for indictment(s),” Scott wrote.

The sworn court papers were filed in support of a motion to quash a subpoena, known as a duces tectum, issued by Patrick Whalen, the attorney representing Ms. Greenfield.

He asked for police reports, an autopsy and other documents related to the investigation.

Ms. Greenfield sued the prosecutor’s office last year, frustrated after she was unable to get her son’s autopsy report.

Talaya Greenfield sits before a Trentonian cafeteria table with documents and papers related to her slain son on Nov. 6, 2015 during an interview. (Scott Ketterer - The Trentonian)

Her attorney in a federal lawsuit accused local cops and prosecutors of a race-based conspiracy to “conceal” the identity of Jamer’s killer.

The lawsuit suggested police may have caused or contributed to the Trenton man’s death.

Scott’s sworn affidavit contradicts those allegations. In it, he said the prosecutor’s office has dedicated “time and manpower to ensure the responsible parties are brought to justice.”

Scott, who said he could not comment beyond what was in the papers, suggested that forcing the prosecutor’s office to turn over documents from the investigation would adversely impact the case.

“Due to the status of the Greenfield homicide, it is not appropriate or timely to release the material that plaintiff seeks in the subject subpoena,” the assistant prosecutor said. “Divulging the contents of the MHTF’s investigation file would be unreasonable and counterproductive to the continued pursuit of charges concerning the death of Mr. Greenfield.”

The prosecutor’s office was still required to respond to the subpoena despite being dismissed as a defendant in Ms. Greenfield’s lawsuit.

The county has also been dismissed as a defendant, according to court papers, leaving only claims against the Trenton Police department

A federal judge hasn’t issued a decision on the subpoena request.

Whalen did not immediately return a phone call requesting comment.

A 58-year-old woman who died Friday afternoon from senseless gun violence outside the North 25 housing complex has been identified as Wilma Rutledge, who lived on Carver Lane where the shooting occurred.

The Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office on Saturday had no additional updates on the shooting that also left a 14-year-old city girl injured with gunshot wounds that were not considered to be life-threatening.

Trenton Police investigate a fatal shooting on North Willow Street and Carver Lane on Friday, Oct. 6, 2017. (GREGG SLABODA — The Trentonian)

The incident occurred about 3:10 p.m. Friday at the intersection of Carver Lane and North Willow Street. Both shooting victims were transported to Capital Health Regional Medical Center by private means. Rutledge was pronounced dead at the hospital while the teenager was last reported to be in stable condition, officials said.

Rutledge’s grieving family members and friends did not immediately have any comments Saturday afternoon when a reporter from The Trentonian stopped by the household to send condolences.

Sources say the victims of the shooting were innocent bystanders.

Trenton Mayor Eric Jackson on Friday called on the public to join him “in keeping the victims, their families and friends in our prayers as our police force executes the work that is needed to hold everyone involved in this senseless act accountable.”

A source with intimate knowledge of the situation said the 14-year-old shooting victim was a dedicated volunteer who helped special needs children. For the past six months, the teenager has worked with the Special Parent Advocacy Group, the source said of the girl, who is a student at the 9th Grade Academy in Trenton. She even volunteered on Thursday, the day before she was shot.

The source said the teenager was hanging out with a group of friends after school on Friday when a couple of guys came up and started shooting.

“The police director with the full support of the mayor is committing every asset at its disposal to identify and locate the individual or individuals responsible for this senseless and shocking act,” Trenton Police Lt. Stephen Varn said on Friday.

No arrests in connection with the fatal shooting have been announced as of Saturday afternoon. Anyone with information on the incident is urged to contact the Mercer County Homicide Task Force at (609) 989-6406 or the Trenton Police Confidential Tip Line at (609) 989-3663.

Staff Writer David Foster contributed to this report.

Jihad Jenks

A suspect has been arrested in connection with the July 23 shooting death of Tisheen Rasheen Mack and then was released from jail on electronically monitored home detention after a judge blasted the state’s handling of the case.

Jihad “Jay” Jenks, 23, of Ewing, has been charged with second-degree provoked manslaughter and weapons offenses on allegations he shot and killed 26-year-old Mack “in the heat of passion” on the 800 block of East State Street.

Mack had a gun on him on the night he was slain, according to police sources. Police charged Jenks on Aug. 2 but failed to justify the charges in an affidavit of probable cause — a mind-boggling omission that prompted Mercer County Superior Court Judge Peter Warshaw to denounce the state’s prosecutorial practices.

“The only place where this defendant’s name appears in this complaint is in the portion of the complaint that lists the name of the defendant. How do I find probable cause based upon an affidavit of probable cause which doesn’t even mention the defendant?” Warshaw said at Jenks’ Aug. 29 detention hearing. “This is completely and totally unacceptable.”

“This is a 23-year-old man with absolutely no prior record from what I can tell, and you are asking me to detain him today based on an affidavit of probable cause which doesn’t even mention him by name let alone give me any meaningful detail about what happened other than a recitation of the fact that the victim was shot,” Warshaw added. “That’s really all I can tell — and a reaffirmation of the ZIP code in Trenton. I don’t know where the idea that this is an acceptable showing of probable cause comes in and in terms of the reporting, I don’t even know where to start with that.”

Mercer County Assistant Prosecutor Michelle Gasparian told Warshaw that neither the Mercer County Homicide Task Force nor the Trenton Police Department had completed an investigative report that would have explained Jenks’ alleged involvement in the slaying of Mack. She said the state, however, had a three-hour recorded statement from an eyewitness who saw the gun violence and invited Warshaw to watch the video.

“And because nobody in your office or the Trenton Police Department has written any sort of report, my only choice is to watch all of this stuff? …” Warshaw said. “This is absurd.”

The state initially wanted to keep Jenks locked up without bail at the Mercer County Correction Center. The state filed its motion requesting pretrial detention on Aug. 5, but the detention hearing was delayed several times before finally being held Aug. 29 after Jenks hired private defense attorney John “Jack” Furlong.

“It is absolutely ridiculous that there is not a police report … four weeks after the complaint was signed,” Warshaw said. “I don’t want to hear about they are still working (on it).”

Furlong at the Aug. 29 detention hearing said he hoped the state would have provided him with more discovery evidence.

“It’s now six weeks post shooting, and there are no police reports,” Furlong said. “I was given a series of DVDs, the bulk of which appear to be CCTV (surveillance video) from the street. The state has represented to me that in those DVDs my client is seen entering or leaving a house on the street where the shooting occurred. … Candidly, I looked at those DVDs. I did not find anything revealing on that fact, but I don’t dispute that that is the state’s view of the situation.”

Gasparian said the state was pursuing pretrial detention on the grounds that Jenks would be at high risk of failing to appear in court and that Jenks would present a high-risk threat of danger to the community at large, but she could not overcome the liability of being sent to argue for detention against a defendant who was not linked to the crime scene under the affidavit of probable cause.

After Warshaw heavily criticized the state’s handling of the case, Furlong requested an off-the-record private conference with the judge and assistant prosecutor. The attorneys and judge went behind closed doors in the jury room for about 100 minutes — nearly two hours — and came back in the courtroom with the state announcing a sudden about-face.

“The state is going to be withdrawing its motion for detention and, upon agreement with the defense, is asking that Mr. Jenks be placed on electronic monitoring and home detention,” Gasparian said. “Mr. Jenks has no prior criminal history.”

With the state and defense attorney consenting to electronically monitored home detention, Warshaw signed the order and added additional conditions of release.

Jenks is confined to home detention at his grandfathers’ house on the 1600 block of 12th Street in Ewing and must refrain from possessing a firearm, destructive device or other dangerous weapon and must refrain from excessive use of alcohol or any use of narcotic, drug or other controlled substance without a prescription by a licensed medical practitioner.

Jenks also must not commit any new offenses during his pretrial release and must avoid any and all contact with James Diggs Jr., the eyewitness who saw Tisheen Mack get gunned down.

Police sources say the slain Mack had a gun on him, which was found while medical personnel stabilized him at the scene. Mack was later pronounced dead at the hospital.

The affidavit of probable cause had no substantive information in it, but it is possible that Mack may have engaged or attempted to engage his killer in a gunfight.

The circumstances surrounding Mack’s death seem comparable to the circumstances surrounding the 2015 shooting death of 19-year-old Elvin Kimble.

The slain Kimble was reportedly wearing a ski mask and still had a gun in his hand when police found him slumped over near a van on the 700 block of Division Street on Nov. 24, 2015.

Two defendants in the Kimble slaying were originally arrested on heavy murder charges, but Gary Spears, 35, of Trenton, ended up pleading guilty to first-degree aggravated manslaughter and has been sentenced to 10 years of incarceration while co-defendant Jermaine Johnson, 41, of Ewing, pleaded guilty to third-degree hindering prosecution and has been sentenced to five years behind bars.

In the Mack slaying, Jenks has been charged with second-degree manslaughter, possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose and unlawful possession of a handgun without a permit for the Trenton homicide that occurred July 23.

Police charged Jenks under a peculiar statute known as 2C:11-4B (2), which defines provoked manslaughter as being a case where “a homicide which would otherwise be murder … is committed in the heat of passion resulting from a reasonable provocation.”

If Mack was armed with a gun, whoever gunned him down could have been under reasonable provocation.

“I don’t have any additional statements beyond what was said in court,” a Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office spokeswoman said Tuesday when asked why Jenks was charged with second-degree provoked manslaughter rather than first-degree murder and why prosecutors consented to Jenks being placed on electronically monitored home detention after initially pursuing pretrial detention.

Records show Jenks was committed to the Mercer County Correction Center on Aug. 4 and discharged Aug. 30 on his own recognizance with conditions that include electronically monitored home detention.

Wayne Bush (left) and Jafar “Young Farr” Lewis

The gunman who shot and killed Trenton hip-hop lyricist Jafar “Young Farr” Lewis over four years ago has now fessed up, abruptly ending his presumption of innocence in a lingering homicide case that previously ended in a mistrial.

Wayne Bush pleaded guilty last Friday to second-degree reasonable provocation manslaughter for slaying the 26-year-old rap artist on Aug. 23, 2013.

“He still wanted to go to trial, but his family was very much in favor of him taking the offer,” defense attorney John Furlong said of his client Bush. 

Under the plea agreement, the 39-year-old Bush could receive anywhere from five-to-10 years of state incarceration at his sentencing hearing, which is scheduled for Dec. 1. The state will likely request the maximum 10-year sentence, but Furlong said he will recommend the judge to impose the minimum five-year prison sentence.

Bush was originally charged with murder, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and unlawful possession of a weapon on allegations he armed himself with a pistol and fired a kill shot that ripped through Lewis’s skull on Middle Rose Street near Brunswick Avenue in Trenton’s North Ward.

Twanna Robinson heard two gunshots that night and then saw Bush standing above her fiancé Lewis, who was lying motionless on the ground. “You going to jail!” she immediately shouted at Bush, who fled from the scene in a vehicle, according to Robinson’s witness testimony.

At Bush’s initial murder trial in March, Mercer County Superior Court Judge Robert Billmeier declared a mistrial after the state’s final witness gave potentially inflammatory testimony on the witness stand. The state was preparing to retry the case, but then Bush fell into more legal troubles that gave him an incentive to take a plea deal.

Bush, who has been incarcerated at the Mercer County Correction Center since surrendering Aug. 30, 2013, was re-arrested Sept. 18 and charged with third-degree witness tampering and fourth-degree contempt. He is accused of recently contacting a witness in his homicide case and asking her about the welfare of her children and contacting the boyfriend of another witness in violation of a judge’s no-contact order.

Authorities say Bush was willing to offer something of value to a witness not to testify against him. The new criminal charges have resulted in Bush being jailed without bail on pretrial detention; he was previously being held on high monetary bail on the murder charges.

Considering that a trial by jury could have found Bush guilty of first-degree murder and considering that Bush has accrued four years of jail credit, he ultimately decided to resolve his homicide case by pleading guilty to second-degree provoked manslaughter in a deal that may also resolve the witness tampering case, according to Furlong.

The state has obtained a communications data warrant to explore whether Bush has made any further contact with witnesses, but Furlong said he is “confident” the state will not find any such evidence.

“The state has said based on the investigation to date, if nothing else comes out, they would be willing to let him plead guilty to contempt of court fourth-degree to run concurrent to manslaughter,” Furlong said.

If Bush is allowed to resolve his pending witness tampering case by pleading guilty to fourth-degree contempt at his Dec. 1 sentencing hearing, he would be sentenced to serve concurrent terms not to exceed 10 years. He would have to serve 85 percent of the manslaughter term and would be awarded four years of jail credit. Under that scenario, if a judge sentenced Bush to seven years of incarceration, he would end up serving less than two years in state prison for killing local hip-hop sensation Young Farr in cold blood.

The city woman who killed her ex-boyfriend in a May 2015 East Trenton stabbing attack has received 17 years of state imprisonment.

Charlotte Carman, 40, was originally charged with first-degree murder for fatally plunging a knife into the lung of 33-year-old Paris France Way but pleaded guilty earlier this year to a downgraded charge of aggravated manslaughter.

Charlotte Carman (left) and Paris France Way

Four of Way’s loved ones, including his mother and two sons, cried on the courtroom podium Friday afternoon as they spoke at Carman’s sentencing hearing about the pain of their loss. 

“It’s so hard. I miss my son so much,” Robin Porter said, noting Paris Way was her first-born and that she had introduced him to Carman. “I don’t know why she took my son’s life.”

“I wish my dad was still here,” said 16-year-old Nazir Way. “I loved my dad so much. I think about him all the time.”

Paris Tyson, 16, said the violent death of his father has ripped the family apart, adding, “He wanted to do so much with us, but now he can’t because he’s not here anymore.”

Longtime friend Nikiya Jacobs, who began dating Paris Way several weeks before his death, also spoke at Friday’s sentencing. “I miss him every day,” she said. “We need peace. We need comfort. We need closure.”

Carman took Paris France Way’s life on May 31, 2015, launching a fatal knife attack after stalking him near the intersection of Sherman Avenue and St. Joe’s Avenue. Police arrested Carman about two weeks after the slaying.

“Jealousy and rage fueled this homicide,” Mercer County Assistant Prosecutor Stacey Geurds said, requesting the court to hit Carman with at least 20 years of incarceration.

Geurds recalled the facts in the case, reminding the court that Carman “viciously stabbed the victim” and left him to die in the street. Carman also spit on the victim as he was dying, stole his cash and other personal belongings and slashed the four tires to Nikiya Jacobs’ vehicle before fleeing, Geurds said.

“This defendant all along has never showed remorse,” Geurds added. She also mentioned that Carman got a tattoo in the days following the homicide, using the victim’s money to pay for it. The tattoo depicted the victim’s date of birth.

“This case did involve provocation,” Carman’s defense attorney Joseph Krakora said Friday, urging the court to impose a 15-year prison sentence, which he described as “a substantial punishment.”

“Had this case gone to trial, Ms. Carman would have pleaded self-defense,” the public defender said, adding his client over the last two years has “expressed how sorry she is.”

Carman sported an orange Mercer County Correction Center inmate jumpsuit and did not speak at her sentencing hearing on Friday. She sat quietly and did not appear to be emotional one way or another.

Within the statutory range, Mercer County Superior Court Judge Thomas Brown could have sentenced Carman to as low as 10 years of incarceration or as much as 30 years behind bars for aggravated manslaughter.

Carman was a jilted ex-girlfriend jealous of Paris Way being with another woman. Judge Brown took that into account but also said the fact that Carman mailed a post-homicide letter to Paris Way’s family “gives credence to the fact that she is somewhat remorseful.”

Brown sentenced Carman to 17 years of incarceration to be followed by five years of parole supervision. She must serve at least 85 percent of the sentence and is barred from having any contact with the victim’s family. She also has been ordered to pay about $600 in restitution for the damage she caused to Nikiya Jacobs’ vehicle.

Carman, who has been incarcerated at the county jail since June 14, 2015, has been awarded with 854 days of jail credit, meaning she will be eligible for parole in about 12 years.

The victim’s mother was not satisfied with the punishment.

“She should have gotten life,” Robin Porter said of Carman. “Seventeen years ain’t nothing. She had no remorse at all.”

The North Jersey teenager who stabbed and killed 27-year-old Carlos Leiva-Oviedo during a June 2016 Chambersburg attack will serve at least one decade of hard time behind bars.

Carlos Leiva-Oviedo

Danny Saad, 16, of Newark, has pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter, admitting he killed the hardworking Honduran immigrant during a visit to New Jersey’s capital city. The victim suffered multiple stab wounds and was later pronounced dead at the hospital.

Saad was originally charged with murder, armed robbery and weapons offenses in connection with the slaying, which occurred near the intersection of Hudson and Genesee streets during the early morning hours of June 14, 2016.

Detective Roberto Reyes of the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office, with assistance from other agencies, arrested Saad at a relative’s house in Newark on July 6, 2016. Saad was 15 at the time of his juvenile arrest and turned 16 in May shortly after prosecutors charged him as an adult.

A Mercer County grand jury on June 23 indicted Saad on multiple counts, including first-degree murder, but the counts of murder, armed robbery and weapons offenses in the indictment will be disposed of when he is sentenced later this year for aggravated manslaughter. Those are the terms of the plea agreement, which Saad accepted on Oct. 2 when he voluntarily came forward as a self-confessed killer.

The homicide victim Carlos Leiva-Oviedo was an immigrant from Honduras who moved to Trenton circa 2014 to earn money for his family, most of whom still live in Honduras. He was the father of a young child and provided for his family by working in Trenton as a roofer.

Weeks after the slaying, authorities released a still image and surveillance video of two men who were said to be connected to the homicide case. The Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office previously disclosed that the video and image released to the media by police in July 2016 “helped investigators identify Saad” and solve the case, which suggests Saad acted alone and had no accomplices.

Authorities were trying to locate these men in connection with the June 2016 homicide of Carlos Leiva-Oviedo. This still image helped police identify Danny Saad as the killer.

Saad is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 8 before Mercer County Superior Court Judge Robert Bingham II. He could receive as low as 10 years of incarceration and as much as 30 years in the slammer for pleading guilty to first-degree aggravated manslaughter.

If Saad took his case to trial and received guilty verdicts on the heavy charges, he would have faced a minimum of 30 years and a maximum of 75 years behind bars.

Defense attorney Harley D. Breite is representing Saad while Mercer County Assistant Prosecutor Stacey Geurds is prosecuting him on behalf of the state.

Staff writer Penny Ray contributed to this report. 

The sheriff’s officer who engaged Tyleeb Reese in a gunfight during the deadly 35-hour standoff in South Trenton five months ago was justified in firing his service weapon and will not be charged, according to newly released findings by the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office.

Reese, 35, of Trenton, is accused of shooting and killing a civilian passer-by during the early hours of the standoff and firing multiple shotgun blasts at law-enforcement officers, injuring three of them.

Tyleeb Reese

Authorities say Reese initiated the gunfight about 6:30 a.m. May 10 by firing two shotgun blasts at members of a regional U.S. Marshals fugitive task force. The officers were attempting to apprehend Reese on a fugitive arrest warrant because he had failed to register as a convicted sex offender.

As the officers entered Reese’s Centre Street residence and were advancing up the stairs to the second floor, Reese’s initial shotgun blasts struck the ballistic shield that was being held by a Mercer County Sheriff’s Officer identified as Officer 1, authorities said Friday. The force knocked three of the officers down the stairs and Officer 1 landed on the floor with the shield on top of him.

After hearing a third shotgun blast and seeing a cloud of plaster and dust, Officer 1 fired his Glock .40 caliber service handgun at least twice toward Reese, according to the state AG’s Office, which said no round hit Reese or anyone else.

Reese throughout the day and night fired additional shots at the officers and fired the kill shots that struck homicide victim Robert Powell Jr. in the torso, thigh and ankle, authorities said. Powell, 56, of Lamberton Street, was a loving grandfather.  An autopsy determined that one of the fatal shots lacerated Powell’s lung and heart and that another shot hit an artery and shattered his thigh bone, according to information the Attorney General’s Office released on Friday.

Robert Powell Jr. (right)

The standoff ended about 5 p.m. May 11 with Reese surrendering peacefully. A judge eventually ordered Reese to be held without bail on pretrial detention and he has since been indicted on 18 counts, including one count of first-degree murder and seven counts of first-degree attempted murder.

The Attorney General’s Shooting Response Team investigated the deadly incident and determined that Officer 1 was the only officer who discharged a gun during the incident. The New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice further determined the officer’s use of force was justified under the law, so the state never pursued grand jury charges against the officer, authorities announced on Friday.

Elie Honig of the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice “concluded that the officer who fired on Reese used an acceptable level of force,” the AG’s Office said Friday in a press release. “The facts and circumstances reasonably led the officer to believe his actions were immediately necessary to protect himself and his fellow officers.  An officer may use deadly force in New Jersey when the officer reasonably believes it is immediately necessary to protect the officer or another person from imminent danger of death or serious bodily harm.”

The three officers injured during the standoff received treatment at Capital Health Regional Medical Center for graze wounds and contusions.

The newly released findings by the state Attorney General’s Office confirms much of the previously reported details about the deadly incident while revealing new details on some of the alleged actions Reese took while he was barricading himself inside his house on the 300 block of Centre Street.

“After Reese knocked a hole in an upstairs party wall between his townhome and the adjacent home, two state troopers were deployed to insert a camera and robot into Reese’s home,” the AG’s Office said Friday. “They were in a second-floor bathroom of the adjacent home, carrying ballistic shields, when Reese allegedly fired two shotgun blasts through the bathroom door, striking the shield of one of the troopers.  The troopers were not injured and withdrew.”

Law enforcement officers at the scene of a standoff on Centre Street in Trenton that ended Thursday, May 11, 2017, after 35 hours with suspect Tyleeb Reese surrendering. (John Berry - The Trentonian)

Reese faces 30 years to life in prison if convicted on first-degree murder.

Michael Ganie

A city man was arrested last week in connection with the hit-and-run death of 61-year-old Rodney Taylor.

Michael Ganie, 53, is charged with death-by-auto, leaving the scene of an accident and several other offenses in connection with Taylor's death. He's being held in jail pending a detention hearing.

Officials say Taylor was in the middle of the roadway when he was struck by a vehicle Ganie was driving through the 400 block of Chambers Street around 10:20 p.m. on September 17. Taylor suffered severe injuries and later died at the hospital.

Ganie fled the scene after the accident, officials say, but a detective developed evidence that places him behind the wheel of the car at the time of the fatal crash.

Rodney Taylor

Taylor is the second person to die from a hit-and-run accident in Trenton so far this year.

In March, 39-year-old Lea Pringle was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver in the 600 block of North Olden Avenue. A 17-year-old unlicensed city girl was later arrested and charged with death by auto in connection with Pringle’s death.

According to the New Jersey State Police Uniform Crime Reporting Unit, vehicular homicides are considered manslaughter and are, therefore, not reported as a homicide statistic.

The Trentonian, however, includes death by auto and justifiable police shootings in its yearly homicide count.

Zion Williams

Three teenagers have been arrested in connection with the murder of 58-year-old Wilma Rutledge.

Zion Williams, 18, and two 16-year-old males are charged with murder, attempted murder, endangering the welfare of a child and related weapons offenses in connection with the October 6 shooting, which claimed Rutledge’s life and injured a 14-year-old girl.

Rutledge and the teenage girl were innocent bystanders when gunfire rang out in the North 25 Housing complex that Friday afternoon. Rutledge was later pronounced dead at the hospital, while the teenager sustained non-life-threatening injuries.

Wilma Rutledge (Facebook Photo)

Sources with intimate knowledge of the situation said the teenage victim was a dedicated volunteer who helped special needs children.

Prosecutors have not disclosed a motive for the shooting.

Williams was arrested in the capital city this past Friday night by the U.S. Marshals NY/NJ Regional Fugitive Task Force. The two juvenile males were arrested Sunday at a home in Ewing.

The prosecutor’s office has filed a motion to detain Williams while the case plays out in court.

The names of the other two suspects have not been released because they are juveniles.

Trenton Police investigate a fatal shooting at the North 25 Housing complex on Friday, Oct. 6, 2017. (GREGG SLABODA — The Trentonian)

A city man facing vehicular homicide charges has been released from jail after the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office had a change of heart.

Michael Ganie

Three days after his high-profile arrest, 53-year-old Michael Ganie was set free Monday with minimal conditions. He is accused of striking and killing 61-year-old Rodney Taylor in a Sept. 17 hit-and-run car accident near the McDonald’s restaurant off Chambers Street.

Prosecutors originally filed a detention motion seeking to keep Ganie locked up at the county jail without bail pending final resolution of his case. But upon further review, the state determined it would be more appropriate for Ganie to be released on minimal, non-monetary conditions.

“We did withdraw the motion,” Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office spokeswoman Casey DeBlasio confirmed Tuesday in an email. “Under the new bail reform laws, the recommendation is for release. We filed initially, but after receiving more information felt it was appropriate to withdrawal the motion.”

The bail reform law that went into effect Jan. 1 discourages monetary bails and allows the state to pursue pretrial detention against any newly arrested defendant charged with high crimes and any newly arrested defendant deemed to be dangerous or a flight risk.

Trenton Police Detective Craig Kirk arrested Ganie on Friday and charged him with death-by-auto, leaving the scene of an accident and several other offenses in connection with Taylor’s death. He was being held in jail pending a detention hearing, but Judge Harold George ordered Ganie to be released Monday after the prosecutor’s office withdrew its detention motion.

“I am not going to speculate on why they withdrew the detention motion, but I think it is what they should have done,” Ganie’s defense attorney Raymond C. Staub said Tuesday in an interview, adding his client is a gainfully employed, longtime Trenton resident who will show up to his mandatory court dates.

“He is presumed innocent; he has maintain throughout he had nothing to do with this,” Staub said of his client. “Nobody wanted this to happen. It’s a tragedy all around. Hopefully we won’t compound it and go after someone innocent of the charges.”

In releasing the defendant, the judge did not consider whether the state has a strong case against Ganie, according to Staub, who suggested the judge made the decision based upon factors that did not consider Ganie to be at high-risk of committing new criminal activity or at high-risk to flee from prosecution.

Rodney Taylor

The judge released Ganie on Pretrial Monitoring Level 1 conditions, which means he has to make monthly phone reporting to the New Jersey Judiciary’s Pretrial Services Program, according to Staub. No restrictions have been placed on Ganie’s driving privileges.

Authorities said Rodney Taylor was in the middle of the roadway as a pedestrian when he was struck by a vehicle Ganie was driving through the 400 block of Chambers Street about 10:20 p.m. Sept. 17. Taylor suffered severe injuries and later died at the hospital.

Ganie is accused of leaving the scene of the accident and authorities say they have evidence that places him behind the wheel of the car at the time of the fatal crash.

Staub said he has not seen any evidence in the case as of Tuesday.

Ganie has a pre-indictment conference scheduled for Nov. 29 at the Mercer County Criminal Courthouse.

A fourth man was arrested and charged in a double shooting that left one woman dead and injured a teenager outside the North 25 Housing complex this month.

Rahein McInnis, 32, of Trenton, was arrested in a vehicle on Country Lane in Ewing around 9 p.m. Wednesday night by members of the Mercer County Homicide Task Force and the U.S. Marshals.

He is charged with murder and related offenses along with 18-year-old Zion Williams and two 16-year-old teens whom prosecutors have not identified because they are underage.

Williams is also charged with child endangerment, and prosecutors have filed a motion to have him detained pending trial.

The four suspects were allegedly involved in the Oct. 6 broad daylight double shooting at the intersection of Carver Lane and North Willow Street that left 58-year-old Wilma Rutledge dead and injured a 14-year-old girl, a student at the 9th Grade Academy in Trenton.

Wilma Rutledge (Facebook Photo)

Rutledge was shot in the neck and the teenager was hit by bullets in the stomach and arm, sources said, adding that they were innocent bystanders. The victims were taken to the hospital where Rutledge succumbed to her injuries.

An investigation led by detectives Scott Peterson and Nancy Diaz culminated in the arrests of the criminal quartet. Both 16-year-olds were taken into custody without incident. Prosecutors have not specified their alleged roles in the homicide.

Rutledge was born in Daytona Beach, Florida, raised as a Jehovah’s Witness and lived in Trenton for more than five decades, according to her obituary.

She graduated from Trenton Central High School and the Wilford Beauty Academy. Rutledge, who worked at the Coca-Cola Factory in Hightstown, is survived by three sons.

Alleged killer Zion Williams has personal experience with handling weapons and getting shot.

Zion Williams

Williams, who was arrested last week in connection with the Oct. 6 murder of 58-year-old Wilma Rutledge, was adjudicated last year for being a juvenile in unlawful possession of a handgun and was hospitalized earlier this year after surviving gunshot wounds, according to statements made in court.

Defense attorney Robin Lord, who is representing Williams, said her client was shot several months ago and “almost died from that injury.”

Prosecutors say surveillance video captured Williams pointing a handgun in the direction of the victim who died in the Oct. 6 shooting at the North 25 housing complex. In addition to killing Rutledge, a local grandmother, the wild afternoon shooting also injured a 14-year-old girl. 

Williams questions whether police obtained any surveillance video from when he was shot in May, according to Lord, who said Williams has a long road to recovery and suffers from depression. She also said Williams has a steady work history with the Coryell Tree Service and said he graduated early from the Rubino Academy last June.

Williams is one of four defendants arrested this month in connection with the Oct. 6 shooting. The other co-defendants in the homicide case are Rahein McInnis, 32, of Trenton, and two 16-year-old teens whom prosecutors have not identified because they are underage.

Mercer County Assistant Prosecutor Heather Hadley in court on Friday successfully argued for Williams to be placed on pretrial detention, mentioning Williams’ juvenile and adult criminal history and the fact that he faces life in prison if convicted of murder.

Police have charged Williams with accomplice liability counts of murder, attempted murder, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, unlawful possession of a weapon and endangering the welfare of a child. Trenton Police Detective Scott Peterson of the Mercer County Homicide Task Force arrested him Oct. 20.

At the court hearing on Friday, Mercer County Superior Court Judge Robert Billmeier signed the order placing Williams on pretrial detention.

Williams through his attorney asked the court why was he being detained without bail when he could have been released on electronically monitored home detention.

Billmeier said Williams has a right to file a timely appeal on the detention order.