On November 13, 2006, at about 2:00 p.m., two unmasked gunmen ambushed 28-year-old Kevin Parks who was hanging out with some friends and relatives at a home on Euphrates Avenue. Parks was not too far from his home and was able to run from his attackers but was pursued by one of them who opened fire shooting him as many as eight times. Witnesses told police that the gunman stood over Parks and opened fire before leaving the scene. The shooting occurred in broad daylight and other individuals were injured as well. Park’s uncle, 38-year-old Charles Moss, was shot once in the upper back while, 29-year-old Jose Pech was shot twice, once in the thigh and once in the leg.
Police arrested Brandon Tillett and James Escarpeta for the shooting. They appeared before Justice Adolph Lucas on Wednesday, March 18, 2009 to face charges of one count of murder and two counts of attempted murder. Trienia Young was the prosecutor in the case. Her first witness was Sheena Barrow. She told the court that she could not remember what she told police in 2006 about the shooting that took Park’s life. Prosecutor Young tried asking her questions to refresh her memory of that day, but it was to no avail. Barrow maintained that she could not remember what she told police in her statement.
Shortly after Barrow’s testimony failed for the prosecutor, she learned that her second main witness was shot the night before. Sherlett Arnold, witness for the prosecution, was shot in the buttocks on Monday night, March 16, and Young did not become aware of that shooting until Wednesday morning when Arnold failed to show up at court. In front of the jury of two men and ten women, Young informed the court that she was forced to close her case because of the situation that she has been faced with.
Judge Lucas then addressed the jurors regarding the elements of murder, which Young failed to prove to them. He concluded that Young was never able to prove the elements; hence, he directed the foreman to acquit the two men of the charges. The men were acquitted and cannot be retried for the charges.
