Aug. 12, 2007, 12:12AM
Tears, resolve at services in Newark for 3 students
As fourth person is sought in deaths, city unites to combat violence


By ERIKA HAYASAKI
Los Angeles Times

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NEWARK, N.J. — A woman kissed the dead young man on his cheek as he lay in a casket of silky white lining. From the church balcony, someone wailed. The casket closed, and the choir rose to its feet, rocking in song and shaking tambourines.

Speaking at his first of three funerals Saturday, Mayor Cory Booker said of 20-year-old Dashon Harvey, a former drum major whom friends called Shawny: "He was a musician, he was a model, he embodied hope," Booker said, his voice rising to a roar.

"We must stand up with his beauty, with his boldness, with his courage," he continued. "We must let his spirit continue to live in this city!"

The crowd cheered and shouted: "Yes!" "Amen!"

The three friends died last week — forced to kneel on the ground in a school yard before being shot in the back of the head.

But with each funeral Saturday, there was joy. It came in wistful smiles, when the mayor spoke of the young man who admired his dad and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. It came in wild applause, when friends talked of the other young man who had become an ordained minister, or of the girl who loved to sing, rap and dance.

Harvey, Terrance Aeriel, 18, and Iofemi Hightower, 20, became the 58th, 59th and 60th murders in this city of 240,000 people this year. Their funerals took place one after another at different churches here Saturday, giving mourners an opportunity to grieve for each of them separately.

A fourth victim, 19-year-old Natasha Aeriel, sister of Terrance Aeriel, survived a gunshot to the head. She is helping police with the investigation from her hospital bed.

The friends shared a common love for music and a desire to make their imprint in this world. All four planned to attend Delaware State University this fall.

An art display of music notes and records sat near Harvey's casket inside Metropolitan Baptist Church, as pictures of the part-time model posing in a sweater with a fashion book appeared on an overhead screen. He was a junior in college, pursuing a psychology degree.

At Aeriel's funeral a few miles away, a slideshow of photos flashed on a screen: Aeriel as a baby, as a marching band member, and on his way to prom. He played French horn, but his real passion was preaching. Friends said he recited Bible verses from memory.

At Hightower's funeral, a display showed a large picture of her in a flowing gown. The young woman who loved playing drums had also worked two jobs, at an airport and a nursing home. She had recently been accepted to Delaware State.

Throughout the day, a spirit of urgency to stop the violence and death that has held this city hostage for years swept through churches and into the community, as people spilled out into lobbies and sidewalks to pay tribute to the three shooting victims.

"I have a broken heart," said New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine, standing before a crowded church, during the funeral for Harvey.

Corzine asked the crowd to use this tragedy as a motive to "pull our communities together, and that we stand together and that we reject the violence."

Police have arrested two 15-year-olds and a 28-year-old illegal immigrant from Peru, Jose Carranza, who pleaded not guilty to murder, attempted murder and weapons possession charges Friday.

Police have a warrant out for one suspect, and the community has organized a $150,000 reward for information leading to arrests in the case.

Carranza, who is being held on $1 million bail, is also charged in a separate case with aggravated assault and sexual abuse of a child. At the time of the killings last week, Carranza had been free on $150,000 bail for the previous charges against him. Residents here have expressed outrage over why he was allowed to walk the streets again.

Law officials have said that Carranza fell through the cracks of a system that is overburdened with criminals. On Friday, Essex County Prosecutor Paula Dow acknowledged that the bail system needed to be re-evaluated and said Carranza would not be deported until his cases in Newark are resolved.

Protesters this week marched on City Hall and called for Booker to step down. The 37-year-old mayor had made promises to curb violence in the city during his campaign more than a year ago. But despite his moves to put more police on the streets and launching an anonymous tip line, crime remains high.

On Saturday, Booker's impassioned speeches at all three funerals brought crowds to their feet with applause. Booker spoke of Aeriel, who had preached sermons at a local church and spoke openly to friends about his faith in God.

"He inspired me to go back to the drawing board and see what I must do to continue his work," Booker yelled over the cheers. People stomped their feet and yelled "praise God!"

A few miles away, outside of a small white-stoned church, Grace Temple Baptist, cameras, reporters and community members crowded outside the ceremony waiting for the casket holding Hightower to be driven to the burial. Inside it, mourners honored the elected officials who showed up together in a traveling motorcade.

Outside, some community members demanded a change. Some held a sign: "How many body bags will it take?" Members of the New Black Panther Party talked of holding a rally to unite black and Hispanic residents wanting to end the violence.

Standing in the sun, Thomas Ellis, 48, who was attending his second funeral for the victims that day, wondered why it took so long for all of the attention to come to Newark. He has worked on curbing violence here, dedicating his life to community programs and activism, for over a decade.

As the last funeral of the day came to an end, the mayor, governor, councilmen, and senators streamed out.

"We've been losing people all year. Where were they?" Ellis said of the politicians.

The family came next, some in tears, some held up by others. Then volunteers brought out the posters filled with photos, one for each victim, and stood before the cameras.

Men lifted Hightower's white casket into the white hearse and closed the door. As reporters took notes, a yellow butterfly flew over the hearse. A few minutes later the funeral procession departed for the cemetery.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nation/5046987.html