HOLLAND (WHTC-AM/FM) — Testimony in the trial of accused murdered Juan Sandro Cabrera so far this week has included police officers and the mother of 14-year-old victim Troy “T.J.” Wells Jr.
Testimony today, Thursday, Oct. 24, 2019, is supposed to include an explanation to the jury , detailing the history of the Latin King gang in West Michigan. Cabrera is charged with gang membership; police say he is a Latin King. It’s unclear if Wells was part of a rival gang, Black Disciples, or affiliated with a member. Wells’ family is adamant that he did not participate in gang activities.
So far this week, testimony indicated there were birthday parties underway in each of the second-floor rooms, according to Audra Gamble, managing editor for The Holland Sentinel. She is covering the trial for the paper. (Listen to her interview with WHTC.)
One room was mostly teen girls, some of whom were talking about attending Holland High’s Snowcoming dance the next night, she said.
Wells’ mom, Chemika Perry testified on Wednesday that she’d driven her son and older daughter to the hotel so her daughter could briefly stop by the girls’ room. Perry remained in the car with her young grandchild.
“At the end of the day, whether the gang affiliation accusation sticks or whatever, you know, her son is still dead, and he was 14, and that’s obviously a terrible tragedy,” Gamble said, describing some of the emotion from his family members as they listened to details of the autopsy, which she described as “gory.”
The teen was shot between six and seven times, she said.
Evidence included receipts for the purchse of high-powered rifles. pm pm Feb.2, 2019, and a second firearm, bought just a few hours before the Cabrera and his friends checked into the room. Photos and video shared on the social media site SnapChat
Cabrera’s mother, father, stepmother and his mother’s boyfriend all faced charges related to the murder, of aiding Cabrera’s flight from police and lying to police about what they knew. His mother is currently in Ottawa County Jail on a 60-day sentence and is barred from having any contact with her son.
Gamble said it’s unclear if any of the adults who rented the hotel rooms will face any charges. Testimony this week, Gamble said, indicated “there was no parental supervision in (the girls’ room); and, while some in Cabrera’s room were 18 or older, there did not appear to be adult supervision there, either.
Gamble said the courtroom is crowded and Circuit Court Judge Karen Miedema has strict rules. Only Gamble, as a reporter, is allowed use of her cellphone; everyone else’s phone is put in a locked bag.
Once court action starts, anyone who leaves the room for any reason must wait until after the lunch break to return. She said police officers remain with weapons being presented as part of the evidence
Also underway this week is what’s expected to be a much-shorter murder trial, that of Michael McNeal, charged in the July 24, 2019 murder of his estranged wife, Sheri. He also shot himself in the face. That trial, Gamble said, is expected to wrap up by the end of this week. the Cabrera trial is expected to last all next week. She is sharing intermittent trial updates via her Twitter account, @SentinelAudra.
