By PAUL GRONDAHL
http://bit.ly/lgCifz
SCHENECTADY -- A sweeping crackdown and arrests of dozens of Four Block gang members who terrorized Hamilton Hill for years brought small comfort to three mothers in two cities who still grieve over the deaths of their children lost in the murderous undertow of gang violence."I feel relief that they were finally arrested and that my daughter's death wasn't forgotten," said Lisa Seymour, whose 14-year-old daughter, Cherelle Clarke, was one of four teenaged girls who committed suicide during a heartbreaking 12-month stretch between 2008 and 2009.
The suicides sparked an investigation that led to a two-year federal probe that culminated with the arrests on Thursday of 35 people, mostly in their late teens and early 20s who officials said dealt drugs, shot at rival gang members to protect their criminal turf and left a trail of violence across the city and beyond.
Authorities said Four Block gang members bullied, harassed and forced teenaged girls to perform sexual acts as a form of gang initiation. In turn, the teenaged girls tried to gain acceptance and curry favor among the young male gang-bangers by forming their own offshoot girl crew they called the Hill Bitches.
Girls who tried to resist the pressure to join the gang were bullied relentlessly on the streets and in school. Sometimes, they were jumped and beaten by members of the Hill Bitches in the girls' brand of gang initiation.
"The girls did a lot of fighting and threatened the girls who wouldn't join," said Seymour, who said her daughter was jumped and beaten so badly by the Hill Bitches that she suffered three broken ribs and a head concussion. Her daughter committed suicide about six weeks after that beating, a dark period in which she fell into a spiral of depression.
"They kept trying to get Cherelle into the gang and they taunted her terribly," Seymour said. "They kept saying all she had to do was join the gang, say she was a Four Block bitch and nobody would bother her anymore."
After her suicide, Seymour discovered a diary in her daughter's room with entries that talked about her fear of the gang, the bullying she got in school and on the streets and her suicidal thoughts. She also wrote poetry that gave voice to her struggles of trying to stay on a straight and productive path that avoided the cheap, shiny allure of gold chains, expensive sneakers and the thug life.
"The Four Block gang treated these girls like their property," said Schenectady District Attorney Robert Carney. "They considered the forced sexual acts the benefits of gang membership."
Carney said the gangs' abusive behavior over time tore at the fragile psyches of young girls, creating low self-esteem and a sense of worthlessness that contributed to depression and thoughts of suicide.
The gang's criminal enterprise -- which focused on a cluster of gritty blocks bounded by State and Strong streets and Brandywine and Veeder avenues -- led to federal charges of racketeering, conspiracy, drug trafficking and other felonies. If found guilty, those charged could face sentences ranging from a minimum of 10 years to a maximum of a life sentence.
Authorities said Four Block was responsible for more than two dozen drug sales of crack cocaine, cocaine and heroin, nine gun incidents and multiple acts of violence in that small section of Hamilton Hill in the past two years.
"I'm happy and I feel good that they took down Four Block," said Caroline Turner, whose 18-year-old daughter, Mary Turner, committed suicide in 2009. The girl was pregnant when she took her life. The teenaged boy who impregnated her was an alleged Four Block gang member, the mother said.
"We lived in fear of that gang because they terrorize you every day," said Turner, who was once jumped and beaten by a group of young men she believes were Four Block members.
"I'm glad they got arrested so that some other mother won't have to go through what I've been going through. The pain never goes away," she said.
Meanwhile, the news of the arrests was met with jubilation in Albany, where Allison Banks has waged a campaign against gun violence since her son, Eleek Williams, was shot to death in 2006 outside a bar in the city's West Hill neighborhood during a celebration of his 24th birthday.
Dushan "Lil' Du" Wilson, who was 18 at the time, was acquitted of killing Williams during a 2008 murder trial after deadlocked jurors deliberated more than seven hours. Wilson faced 25 years to life in prison if he was convicted of killing Williams.
The murdered man's mother never felt justice was done in that case and she crusaded tirelessly to try to get Wilson re-tried and convicted.
Banks felt vindicated when Dushan Wilson and 40-year-old Gregory Wilson, who is believed to be Dushan's father, were arrested in Thursday's Four Block gang sweep and were charged with conspiracy to procure, distribute and sell crack cocaine.
"I'm happy because justice was served. I'm feeling closure because my son's killer has been walking around free for five years," said Banks, who was a member of Albany's Gun Violence Task Force and co-leader of the Capital Region chapter of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence.
"I knew they'd get him eventually," she said. "He thought he was untouchable ... I stayed patient and knew his day was coming. I'm ecstatic they got him off the streets."
Back in Schenectady's Hamilton Hill, where Four Block's intimidation was widespread, a sense of pessimism mixed with cautious optimism was expressed Friday.
"When a tree falls, four or five usually grow back up," said Paul Stewart, who owns a home across from the troubled corner of Craig and Emmett streets, the site of open-air drug dealing, murders and a long history of violence.
"We need police on every corner here and 24-hour patrols," said Stewart, a native of Jamaica who's lived in Schenectady for the past eight years. "People are still scared around here, even with the Four Block arrests. I'm not scared of these guys. They threaten me all the time. Now, they're going to prison and I'm still standing in front of my house."
As part of his dark humor, Stewart painted targets on the sidewalk in front of his house. He has grown used to gunshots on his street, but he said he will not be bullied by thugs. He will not hide inside or be a virtual prisoner of his house, as many of his neighbors have become as violence escalated.
"The arrests were the best thing that ever happened on the Hill," said Fernando Ramos, who's lived in the neighborhood for seven years. "It's good the city is doing something to fight crime."
"We can only do so much as residents," said Christopher Stevens, who's lived in the neighborhood for more than 30 years with his mother, who is 90. "We're afraid. These guys are dangerous. We're glad the authorities are finally doing their jobs."
The crackdown came too late for the teenaged girls who long suffered in silence as the gangs beat them down, until they finally broke.
Seymour's dead daughter wrote these verses in a poem she called "This Is My Life:"
"Sometimes I'm mad at the world
And sometimes I'm just sad.
Nobody can see the pain.
Behind my eyes."
Dushan "Lil' Du" Wilson, who was 18 at the time, was acquitted of killing Williams during a 2008 murder trial after deadlocked jurors deliberated more than seven hours. Wilson faced 25 years to life in prison if he was convicted of killing Williams.
The murdered man's mother never felt justice was done in that case and she crusaded tirelessly to try to get Wilson re-tried and convicted.
Banks felt vindicated when Dushan Wilson and 40-year-old Gregory Wilson, who is believed to be Dushan's father, were arrested in Thursday's Four Block gang sweep and were charged with conspiracy to procure, distribute and sell crack cocaine.
"I'm happy because justice was served. I'm feeling closure because my son's killer has been walking around free for five years," said Banks, who was a member of Albany's Gun Violence Task Force and co-leader of the Capital Region chapter of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence.
"I knew they'd get him eventually," she said. "He thought he was untouchable ... I stayed patient and knew his day was coming. I'm ecstatic they got him off the streets."
Back in Schenectady's Hamilton Hill, where Four Block's intimidation was widespread, a sense of pessimism mixed with cautious optimism was expressed Friday.
"When a tree falls, four or five usually grow back up," said Paul Stewart, who owns a home across from the troubled corner of Craig and Emmett streets, the site of open-air drug dealing, murders and a long history of violence.
"We need police on every corner here and 24-hour patrols," said Stewart, a native of Jamaica who's lived in Schenectady for the past eight years. "People are still scared around here, even with the Four Block arrests. I'm not scared of these guys. They threaten me all the time. Now, they're going to prison and I'm still standing in front of my house."
As part of his dark humor, Stewart painted targets on the sidewalk in front of his house. He has grown used to gunshots on his street, but he said he will not be bullied by thugs. He will not hide inside or be a virtual prisoner of his house, as many of his neighbors have become as violence escalated.
"The arrests were the best thing that ever happened on the Hill," said Fernando Ramos, who's lived in the neighborhood for seven years. "It's good the city is doing something to fight crime."
"We can only do so much as residents," said Christopher Stevens, who's lived in the neighborhood for more than 30 years with his mother, who is 90. "We're afraid. These guys are dangerous. We're glad the authorities are finally doing their jobs."
The crackdown came too late for the teenaged girls who long suffered in silence as the gangs beat them down, until they finally broke.
Seymour's dead daughter wrote these verses in a poem she called "This Is My Life:"
"Sometimes I'm mad at the world
And sometimes I'm just sad.
Nobody can see the pain.
Behind my eyes."
Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/default/article/Grieving-moms-seek-justice-for-girls-lost-to-1399750.php#ixzz1NmjdUUPq
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