Ga. city official arrested in slain baby case

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

Now the mayor pro tem and city councilman has been arrested for obstruction for and trying to influence a witness. Reports say witnesses in the Ga town are being intimidated and are scared to come forward. Where is Obamas justice dept now. Where are the major networks. Where is Obama calling for justice.We would have Marshall law by now if the races had been reversed.

The double standard in this country sickens me.

TLANTA (AP) — A coastal Georgia city official was arrested on charges of obstructing law enforcement and influencing a witness in the case involving a 13-month-old boy who was fatally shot last week.David Tucker — an attorney for Brunswick city councilman and mayor pro tem James Henry Brooks — told WTLV that his client was arrested for stepping between police and the mother of 17-year-old suspect De'Marquise Elkins when police tried speaking with her during a court appearance Monday.

Brooks — who also faces racketeering charges in Camden County — was being held Thursday night in the Glynn County jail on $1,256 bond for obstruction. He is also being held without bond on the charge of influencing a witness, sheriff's officials said.

Brooks' arrest came as investigators were looking at a possible gang tie in the slaying of a Georgia toddler. They said Thursday that a bullet used in the shooting had been recovered.

More search warrants were executed Wednesday night, though Glynn County Police Chief Matt Doering didn't say specifically what evidence might have been found.

The chief did reveal Thursday that investigators have recovered the bullet they believe was fired in the killing of 13-month-old Antonio Santiago as his mother strolled him down a sidewalk on March 21 in Brunswick, a town on Georgia's coast. The bullet and a .22-caliber handgun, which was found submerged in a pond two miles from the crime scene, are now being analyzed at a crime lab.

Elkins and another teenager have been charged as adults with murder and other counts.

When asked directly whether it's possible the shooting was a part of a gang initiation, Doering wouldn't go that far, saying investigators are exploring "whether gang involvement is part of this."

Police are concerned about the safety of witnesses in the emotionally charged case, the chief said. However, he pleaded with people who have information to come forward, and to put aside their fears in the interest of justice.

"We know there are still witnesses out there, people who have information," Doering said.

An indictment returned this week accuses Elkins of shooting the toddler in the face.

Elkins' attorney, Kevin Gough, has said his client is "absolutely, 1,000 percent not guilty."

A second suspect, 15-year-old Dominique Lang, is also charged with murder, though prosecutors say they believe it was Elkins who shot the child and wounded his mother in an attempted robbery.

The police chief said attempted robbery charges also were filed but nothing was taken during the killing. It still appears the slaying was random, Brunswick police said.

The few details contained in the indictment seem to back up the story that the slain baby's mother, Sherry West, has repeated to numerous reporters: She was pushing her baby in a stroller when two youths approached asking for money. West says when she refused, the older teen drew a gun and shot her in the leg before shooting her son in the head.

District Attorney Jackie Johnson said she would not seek the death penalty against either suspect because Georgia law doesn't allow capital punishment for defendants charged with crimes committed before they were 18. Elkins was also indicted on two counts in a second attempted robbery and shooting that happened 10 days before the baby was slain.

The suspect's mother, Karimah Elkins, and older sister, Sabrina Elkins, were charged with evidence tampering. The indictment says they threw the revolver that police suspect was used in the shooting into a saltwater pond where investigators recovered it Tuesday.

Karimah Elkins and the suspect's aunt, Katrina Elkins, were also charged with making false statements to police.

My link

[Karee 4,190]

I guess since Obama wouldn't have a son that looked like Antonio, he's got nothing to say on the matter.

[spookyturtle 9,465]

What color is he?

[himher 634]

Why are you so shocked? People who love and dance to and sing about and celebrate crime and violence elect people who tolerate street violence and when they elect them they sure as hell expect the people they elect to protect them from the consequences of it.

Business as usual.

[Karee 4,190]

What color is he?

Who, the baby or the alleged killer?

[himher 634]

What color is he?

The victim was white. You're off the hook - nobody expects you to care.

Edited March 29, 2013 by himher

[spookyturtle 9,465]

Who, the baby or the alleged killer?

The councilman and the killer.

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

It has nothing to do with race. It's about poverty, the lack of opportunity, the lack of a parental role model, among other things. Whether the gang bangers are black Gangstas, Hispanic Chicanos, or white Rednecks won't change a thing. It's easy to point out the the shooters were black, and the baby was white, but it could have been easily the other way around.

[spookyturtle 9,465]

It has nothing to do with race. It's about poverty, the lack of opportunity, the lack of a parental role model, among other things. Whether the gang bangers are black Gangstas, Hispanic Chicanos, or white Rednecks won't change a thing. It's easy to point out the the shooters were black, and the baby was white, but it could have been easily the other way around.

True, but then it wouldn't have been posted here. On VJ, it only matters if a black was involved in a negative or criminal way.

[We Keep Receipts 9,238]

Yes because we know if the murder victim was black and the killer is another race, justice is swift. Oh wait, isn't George Zimmerman still out on bail?

[Robby999 1,024]

I guess Al and Jesse wouldn't answer the phone so he took it on his self to interfere. I wish the reporter had elaborated more on what led to the racketeering charges for the Mayor Pro Tem.

[Robby999 1,024]

Yes because we know if the murder victim was black and the killer is another race, justice is swift. Oh wait, isn't George Zimmerman still out on bail?

If that had been the case it would have been labeled a hate crime and every civil rights activist in the US would be down here marching and demanding the Justice Department investigate the case. In the meantime a few businesses might get vandalized or torched.

[We Keep Receipts 9,238]

If that had been the case it would have been labeled a hate crime and every civil rights activist in the US would be down here marching and demanding the Justice Department investigate the case. In the meantime a few businesses might get vandalized or torched.

Only when the killer isn't arrested. In the TM case, the only reason it reached national attention was because GZ wasn't arrested and the facts were too shaky. If people that were killed were treated equally, this problem wouldn't exist.

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

If that had been the case it would have been labeled a hate crime and every civil rights activist in the US would be down here marching and demanding the Justice Department investigate the case. In the meantime a few businesses might get vandalized or torched.

And that is exactly what would have happened. T.

[Penny Lane 8,159]

It has nothing to do with race. It's about poverty, the lack of opportunity, the lack of a parental role model, among other things. Whether the gang bangers are black Gangstas, Hispanic Chicanos, or white Rednecks won't change a thing. It's easy to point out the the shooters were black, and the baby was white, but it could have been easily the other way around.

Thank you. Exactly.