Three charged in 2017 Thanksgiving Eve Fatal Shooting
Gramiccioni: This is all too common a tragic tale that’s told over and over on the streets of Asbury Park
Three Asbury Park men have been charged in connection with the fatal 2017 Thanksgiving Eve shooting that occured along the 100 block of Prospect Avenue, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher Gramiccioni announced in a Wednesday morning news conference held at the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Satellite Office, located on the corner Main Street and Asbury Avenue.
Steven Taylor, 36, Michael Taylor, 33, and Avery Hopes, 23, all of Asbury Park are charged with first degree murder, conspiracy, possession of a firearm for unlawful purpose, unlawful possession of a weapon, and being certain persons prohibited from possessing weapons.
Michael Taylor was arrested Tuesday in Marlboro, while the other two were served with the charges at Monmouth County Jail, where they were remanded for unrelated charges.
Gramiccioni said the 27-year-old victim Denzel Morgan-Hicks had returned to his hometown from Barnegat to visit a friend at the Frederick Douglas Apartment Complex. After the visit, Morgan-Hicks was getting into his Ford Expedition when a handful of people shot and killed him.
Despite immediate response by emergency service teams, he was declared dead on the scene.
“Please accept the entire law enforcement community’s sorrow and apologies for the passing of your son,” Gramiccioni said to Morgan-Hicks’ mother Vicky, who sat in the front row surrounded by family members. “I know he was a lovely individual; I know he is missed.
“For the last seven months the Asbury Park Police Department, with the assistance of the Major Crimes Bureau at the Prosecutor’s Office and Neptune Township Police Department have worked tirelessly to identify the people that shot and killed Denzel,” Gramiccioni said. “I’d like to say one of the most valuable relationship we hold is the tight, close, working relationship we have with the Asbury Park Police. They take pride in what they do every day here and I’m grateful for that partnership.”
Asbury Park Deputy Chief David Kelso and many of the law enforcement members who worked on the case were in attendance.
The Unanswered Question
Gramiccioni said those asking why the violent crime occurred should stay tuned and follow the prosecution.
“It is difficult for me speak about proofs and things like that outside of a courtroom,” he said. “But as this case gets presented, if the Grand Jury returns an indictment, you will hear and see evidence that is presented that will fill you in on why.”
He did allude to fact that the case had a connection to a 2011 violent criminal act that resulted in a fatality.
“This is all too common a tragic tale that’s told over and over on the streets of Asbury Park,” Gramiccioni said. “The names and the dates, the offenders and the names of the victims and the locations of the crimes might vary but it often comes back to petty score settling, petty disputes, retribution or something along the lines of these examples.”
Gramiccioni called the killing a true tragedy, saying “It is because the great city of Asbury Park is better than this tragic story…Violent crime is a blemish on the otherwise storied reputation that Asbury Park has in Monmouth County and across this nation. Its citizens expect better and they should.”
A Call To Action
As he has done before, Gramiccioni made a plea for the public’s help in solving outstanding homicide cases, referencing the Dec 2, 2016 shooting of 32-year-old Dexter Dunston near 8:02 pm along the 700 block of Third Avenue. The only other unsolved homicide case within the past five years in the city is that of Dante Kelly, a 21-year-old who was gunned down in 2013 on the front porch of his Sewall Avenue home along the 1500 block.
“We want to put ourselves in a position where murders and homicides are not even happening,” Gramiccioni said. “That remains the white whale for all of us in law enforcement; to not only solve the crimes but to do something to stem the tide of them being committed in the first place. I’m looking for a call to action; I’m looking for help…So much of this violent crime is tied to a small number of truly bad people.”
Gramiccioni said law enforcement intel shows just 25 to 75 people who are chronic criminals continuing the cycle of violence in the 1.4 square mile community that has an off season population of 16,000.
“It’s a very small population of an otherwise lovely and historic city that is committing these crimes,” he said. “Some of them may be affiliated with gangs, some of them may be running local, slip shot, drug trafficking organizations, and some are the petty disputes or fights involving one or the other. We in law enforcement know who these criminals are but under our form of justice system, we can’t just pluck them off the streets. It takes information and intelligence to build cases against these people and that’s why I’m asking the public and community at large to work with us.”
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