A year after Marcus Hunter’s death, family still searching for answers

Hunter/Robinson family, Feb. 6, 2014

Catina Hunter at Marcus Hunter’s gravesite

Quancine Robinson at Marcus Hunter’s gravesite

The last time Catina Hunter spoke with her 16-year-old son Marcus Hunter was around 2 p.m. on Feb. 11, 2013. The conversation lasted about five minutes. Hunter told his mother that he would soon join her and about 20 other people for his sister’s birthday party at his grandmother’s house on West Hanover Street.

“Well, I’m just sitting here waiting for you to come,” Catina Hunter recalls telling her son.

And then they hung up. She never imagined that would be their last conversation.

Marcus Hunter continued playing video games in the family’s Rossell Avenue home. His father Quancine Robinson arrived shortly before 2:30 p.m., and after questioning why Hunter hadn’t left for the party, gave him some money to purchase soda from the store. Hunter then ran out the house, and a couple minutes later, Robinson heard gunshots.

“When I heard the gunshots, I didn’t expect Marcus to be the victim; so, I waited a couple minutes,” Robinson said in a recent conversation. “Then I walked outside and looked down the street and didn’t see him. So, I jumped the gate and walked down the sidewalk, and that’s when I found his body lying on the ground.”

Like any father would, Robinson ran to his son and started shaking him. But Hunter didn’t move. He suffered multiple gunshot wounds, including one to the head. Hunter was pronounced dead on that Beakes Street sidewalk.

“I couldn’t believe it,” Robinson said. “I started crying, and then I asked a lady in the window to call police. I don’t like reliving that moment, but the memories are constantly there. It’s hard to sleep.”

As described by his family, Hunter was a smart, quiet and humble young man who visited his grandmother everyday. He played football and basketball, created music and he liked to dance, family say. And he always had a smile on his face.

“Marcus was a sweet kid,” his grandmother Ida Hunter said last week. “I know with all my heart that he didn’t deserve this.”

In the year since Hunter’s death, the Hunter/Robinson family has emotionally struggled. But they have grown closer as a result. They visit Hunter’s gravesite as often as possible, sometimes on a whim, but for every major holiday. And since Hunter is a fan of LeBron James, when the Miami Heat won its second NBA championship, the family visited his gravesite to give him the good news.

“I also tell him about the (Philadelphia) Eagles,” Ida Hunter said. “We talk to him like he’s still here. And we tell him not worry about anything because we’ll make sure justice is served.”

This year, Hunter’s sister Rayshonda Hunter will be 25 years old, an age that all of the family expected Marcus to reach.

“He didn’t get a chance to live his life,” his cousin Precious Hunter said.

And the family will celebrate Rayshonda’s birthday, while celebrating Marcus’ life.

“It’s gonna be hard to deal with,” Rayshonda Hunter said. “I think one day I’ll again look at my birthday as a celebration of my life. Maybe in a couple years, but not now, though.”

Mercer County Prosecutors said last week that there have been no new developments in the investigation of Hunter’s death, but police are actively working the case.

“Every time the phone rings, I pray that it’s the detectives saying they have found Marcus’ killer,” Ida Hunter said. “I hope someone will come forward with a tip for police. His death really took a lot out of the whole family.”

Prosecutors would not comment on a suspected motivation for Hunter’s murder, but Robinson said it may have been the result of a dispute between two city neighborhoods, a dispute in which Hunter was not involved.

“He wasn’t in a gang and he didn’t hang out in the streets,” Robinson said. “If he wasn’t home, he was at his grandmother’s house.”

On Thursday, Feb. 6, Robinson wrote a letter to Hunter; it states:

Dear Marcus,

We know you’re watching down on us and we want you to know that we truly love and miss you a lot. We may one day find closure, but the pain will forever be there. Through the grace of God, we will stay strong. You will forever remain in our hearts and minds.

Love always,

The Hunter/Robinson family.

Anyone with information about Hunter’s murder is asked to call the Mercer County Homicide Task Force at (609) 989-6406, or the Trenton police confidential tip line at (609) 989-3663.

Trenton Crime Stoppers is offering a cash reward for tips that lead to an arrest. Call them at (609) 278-TIPS (8477), or text information and keyword TCSTIPS to 274637. Text STOP to 274637 to cancel. Text HELP to 274637 for help. All tipsters are treated as anonymous.