Reputed gang leader found not guilty of murder in second trial; lesser convictions mean prison time

Before yesterday’s verdict was read in the murder trial of Darnell Reeves, a reputed Bloods street gang member on trial for the second time in the killing of a Jersey City father of four, Hudson Superior Court Judge Lisa Rose warned that anyone who could not control their emotions when the verdict was read would be escorted out the courtroom. Security was tight. About 50 people packed the Jersey City courtroom, including friends and family members of Reeves and friends and family members of Henry Molesky, who was shot once in the head on Clinton Street near West Side Avenue on Dec. 12, 2008 and died two days later at Jersey City Medical Center. Seven months after his first trial ended in a hung jury, Reeves dipped his head when the forewoman announced the jury had found him not guilty of murder. As Reeves, 26, was escorted out of the courtroom in handcuffs, he smiled and said a few words to some family members seated in courtroom. Although Reeves beat the murder rap for a second time, the jury found him guilty of lesser offenses, convictions the prosecutor said yesterday could bring him at least 10 years behind bars. Several family members and friends quickly walked out after the verdict was read. A member of the Molesky family, who refused to provide her name, blamed the jurors for not being more attentive. “They didn’t understand that circumstantial evidence is just as important as regular evidence,” she said. “They were bored and couldn’t bother to listen.” Hudson County Prosecutor Edward DeFazio, who was in the courtroom, called the case “difficult. The family is disappointed and rightfully so, but at least he won’t be going home for a substantial period of time. It’s been an ordeal for the family.” Reeves’ uncle Alvin Reeves, 50, said he never doubted his nephew’s innocence. “I believe he should be coming home soon. He has been locked up for a long time for something he didn’t commit,” Alvin Reeves said. “I thought from the beginning they had the wrong guy . . . I feel it (the verdict) was fair, but I still feel for the family because he (the real killer) is still out there.” The jury found Reeves guilty of unlawful possession of a firearm, possession of a handgun for unlawful purposes, possession of a community gun, and of possession of a weapon by a person not to have a gun because of a prior criminal conviction. Reeves faces up to 10 years on each charge with five years before he is eligible for parole. But based on prior convictions, DeFazio said, he will file a motion with a judge requesting an extended sentence.