Admitted triggerman Melvin Jovel does not offer apology
NEWARK — When Natasha Aeriel faced Melvin Jovel three years ago, he had a .357-caliber Magnum pointed at the teenager.
She begged for mercy, but Jovel showed none, coolly shooting her in the head in a schoolyard in Newark, after having just shot her brother and two friends. Of the four, only Aeriel survived.
Before Jovel was sentenced Thursday to three consecutive life terms in prison, Aeriel faced him one final time, in Superior Court in Newark.
At first, the 22-year-old woman was angry, and admonished Jovel, 21, for not looking at her as she spoke. But the anger subsided, and a calm took hold. "I would like to thank him for allowing me to be closer to Christ," she said, referring to Jovel.
On the night of Aug. 4, 2007, Jovel and five other young men set upon Aeriel and her brother Terrance, 18, and their two friends Iofemi Hightower and Dashon Harvey, both 20, behind Mount Vernon Elementary School.
All four were shot in the head.
"You and your homies had a plan for me," she said to Jovel. "You wanted me dead. But I lived … I’m inspired to inspire the uninspired."
Aeriel’s words followed statements from Hightower’s mother and cousin, and Harvey’s father, who all addressed the court.
James Harvey called his son, Dashon, "a beacon of light. He was funny, stylish, handsome, a prankster, a lovable person to be around. These are fond memories that will never ever be taken away." He also addressed Jovel directly, asking simply, "What possessed you? I haven’t heard you guys ask for forgiveness."
Shalga Hightower expressed pride in her daughter, Iofemi, a talented drummer who had enrolled at Delaware State University that fall on a music scholarship. She was looking forward to joining her three friends, who were already in the school. "There’s no telling what my daughter would have accomplished," he mother said.
Jovel sat stoically as he listened through earphones from a Spanish translator. He did not offer an apology.
Born in Honduras, he grew up in Newark and attended city schools through 11th grade, Superior Court Judge Michael L. Ravin said in court while briefly reviewing the case. He said Jovel has no history of employment, is in the United States illegally and has no prior criminal history.
In September, Jovel admitted to shooting all four victims. Prosecutors said he and the five others charged have ties to a violent Central American street gang known as MS-13, and say the killings were gang-related. Under the terms of the plea agreement, robbery charges were dropped and Jovel will not have to testify against any of the other defendants, three of whom made taped statements to police after their arrests.
Jovel, who also spoke to police, is appealing the admissibility of his statement — given in English — for possible Miranda rights violations. If a judge suppresses them, he can take back the plea and opt for a trial. Jovel’s attorney, Joseph Krakora, has not commented on any aspect of the case.
Late last month, an appellate court said it would allow statements from two other defendants, Alexander Alfaro, 20, and Shahid Baskerville, 18, whose lawyers had also argued Miranda violations.
Alfaro will be the next defendant to stand trial, with jury selection scheduled for Feb. 1. The cases against the remaining defendants: Baskerville, Jose Carranza, 31, and Gerardo Gomez, 18, will be handled separately.
In May, an Essex County jury convicted the first defendant, Rodolfo Godinez — Alfaro’s half-brother — on all charges, including three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder. Prosecutors called Godinez a "principal player" in the killings and in his statement to police, he bragged about having started the MS-13 chapter in Newark.
In court Thursday, Jovel’s only words were to tell the judge, "the person who was sentenced had nothing to do with it," referring to Godinez, who had maintained his innocence.
Ravin sentenced Godinez in July to 245 years in prison, the same amount Jovel received.
Before imposing the sentence Thursday, Judge Ravin rejected the notion that Jovel’s plea showed he had saved the victims’ families the pain of another trial. "There is no reason to believe Mr. Jovel’s motivation in pleading guilty was to spare the victims anything. He was the slaughterer. He was the executioner," the judge said. "He has no sorrow. Expressed not a word of regret … He is utterly without remorse."
At a press conference afterward, Essex County Assistant Prosecutor Thomas McTigue said consecutive life terms for Godinez and now Jovel send a clear message. "It bespeaks the community’s growing impatience with the violence that permeates everyday life," he said, and "the casual way sometimes life is taken in this county without provocation, without any seeming good reason."
Editor's Note: The Star-Ledger did not photograph Natasha Aeriel because she was also the victim of a sexual assault.