By Ken. L. Simmons, Sr.
Reporter
On October 19, 2006 at approximately 6:30 p.m., shots rang out in our neighborhood. Bullets tore through the air, and once again a young life was cut short. Jamal Robinson, 16, was gunned down on 168th Street between Woodycrest and Nelson Avenues.
Robinson’s 18-year-old cousin Rashaun Clinton said he had heard police were describing the event as gang-related, but that this was false. “This didn’t have nothing to do with no gang,” Clinton said. “Sure, you will see some stuff over here from gang members who knew my cousin. But Jamal wasn’t in no gang.”
For his part, Inspector James Essig, commander of the 44th Precinct of the NYPD, said he had no knowledge that the murder was gang-related, and that the incident was still under investigation. Essig said two brothers, both under the age of 21, were in custody in connection with the slaying.
Days after Robinson’s death, Clinton and his friends prepared a memorial that included candles, pictures, an assortment of baseball caps, bandanas, flowers, and notebooks filled with comments like, “Rest in peace” and “We’re gonna miss you”.
It is still not clear exactly what happened in the minutes leading up to Robinson’s murder, but Clinton, who was not present at the time of the shooting, said that Robinson and an unidentified male exchanged words before the male left the scene, apparently still angry. Shortly thereafter, Clinton said someone believed to be related to the man returned to find Robinson and his friends talking in front of Kennedy’s Fried Chicken and Pizza on Nelson Avenue. Clinton said an argument ensued once again, ultimately ending in Robinson being shot in the back and head and then being pistol-whipped.
But while they mourned the death of their friend, the youths who gathered to remember Robinson also said local residents were not talking to police about the shooting. “Even though it’s a bad thing that Jamal got shot,” said Antonio Williamson, 17, “out here on the street if you say anything you are labeled a snitch, and that nobody wants”.
Robinson’s friends said that the conduct of local police had a lot to do with residents’ reluctance to come forward with information. “They [police] come over to us and treat us like dirt,” said Marcus Rosario, 17.
“That’s right”, agreed Clinton. “They jump out and manhandle you, call you names, search your pockets, throw stuff from your wallet on the ground, grab your…and then tell you they will kick your….”
Essig responded that aggressive policing was sometimes necessary. “There may be a call that someone has a gun,” Essig said. “We are not going to politely ask, ‘Do you have a gun?’ We have to be certain they are not armed and we are not in harm’s way.” Essig also said that some Highbridge residents cooperated with the police, but that those who fail to do so endangered the community, adding that 141 illegal guns have been seized in the 44th Precinct this year. There have already been 11 homicides this year in comparison to 12 in 2005.
Still, youths in the community expressed feeling caught between a rock and a hard place, wishing to help neither violent criminals in the neighborhood nor police whom they felt were more likely to target them for harassment than they were to protect them from violence.
“Nobody is going to think that they can call the cops and they are going to come to help them,” said Martin Beavers, 16. “How are they going to help you if they don’t respect you?”
Essig said that he is not saying that innocent people have not been victimized by aggressive police stops, but that the police are working to make the neighborhood safe and should be given the benefit of the doubt by the community.
“We are damned if we do and damned if we don't,” Essig said. He added if residents feel they have been treated improperly by an officer, they can file a complaint with the Civilian Complaint Review Board.
In the meantime, Jamal’s friends and family expressed being weary with the violence in their neighborhood and continued to mourn the loss of someone dear to them. “I’m really going to miss Jamal,” said 16-year-old Justin McCoy, another of Jamal’s cousins. “We used to sleep in the same bed when we was little.”
