Guilty verdict shatters 20-year drug dynasty for Staten Island brothers, who now face possible life sentences
Print John M. Annese | annese@siadvance.com By John M. Annese | annese@siadvance.com
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on October 27, 2014 at 7:40 PM, updated October 27, 2014 at 7:56 PM
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Staten Island's bash brothers are down for the count.
On Monday, a federal jury found Anthony and Harvey Christian, 41 and 42, who were accused of using murder and violence to run the crack cocaine trade in the Park Hill Apartments in Clifton for two decades, guilty on all the counts against them in a racketeering trial.
A third defendant, Jason Quinn, 40, described as their underling in the drug conspiracy, was also found guilty. The three could face life in prison when sentenced.
Their conspiracy included the 1999 murder of 17-year-old Jerome Estrella, and plots to kill two other men, prosecutors said.
The Christian brothers, along with a third brother, James, were dubbed "a scourge on the Island community" by a law enforcement source in 2004, after they were arrested on charges they slashed and beat another man in a pot deal gone wrong.
Anthony (Nitty) and Harvey (Black) Christian were charged in prior assaults, but the brothers beat the charges in separate slayings. In July 1999, James Christian was cleared in Estrella's slaying after after a witness failed to pick him out of a lineup; and in January 1997, a jury acquitted Anthony and Harvey Christian and their co-defendant, Fred Marks, in the May 26, 1995, slaying of John Kennedy III in Clifton. The panel also cleared them of the attempted murder of Carlos Serrano.
On Monday, James Christian sat in a courtroom in Brooklyn federal court and watched as a federal jury read aloud guilty counts for his brothers, Anthony and Harvey.
Anthony Christian occasionally turned and smiled to family members in court, mouthing the words, "I love you," and at various points looked down into the pages of a tattered Bible.
Closing arguments in the trial ended Thursday, and the jury deliberated late into the night both Thursday and Friday.
Federal prosecutors said Anthony and Harvey Christian established themselves in the early 1990s as the men who controlled crack-dealing action around the Park Hill Apartments in Clifton, and fought to keep control of their turf.
They used the building at 55 Bowen St. as their home base throughout their reign, and in the mid-1990s, waged war on Park Hill Avenue to win control of more buildings, prosecutors said. Kennedy was shot dead on May 26, 1995, in one of the gun battles in that war, according to prosecutors.
In 1999, Anthony Christian and Paul (Uncles) Ford sent their enforcer, Brian Humphreys, to kill rival drug dealer Corey (Shank Bank) Brooker, prosecutors said.
Brooker escaped death, but Humphreys killed Estrella, with Anthony Christian's blessing, so he wouldn't warn Brooker about the murder plot.
"Today, their ability to earn money through crime comes to an end, and so does their rule of the streets," said U.S. Attorney Loretta Lynch.
Humphreys and Ford both testified for the prosecution.
The brothers also conspired with Anthony Britt -- who also testified for the government -- in a failed 2010 bid to kill William (Buddha) Jones, and chased off and assaulted police officers who tried to make arrests on their turf, prosecutors contended.
A search of their apartment in February 2010 turned up bulletproof vests, crack cocaine and marijuana.
Quinn, who was tied to the overall conspiracy, wasn't specifically linked to the murder plots. He was convicted on racketeering charges, and on drug and gun possession charges.
Anthony Christian faces a mandatory life sentence, while Harvey Christian faces the prospect of 40 years to life in federal prison. Quinn, meanwhile, could be sentenced to 65 years to life.
"For all of their adult lives, the Christian brothers and their associates terrorized the residents of Park Hill, forcing them to live in fear of violence," said United States Attorney Loretta Lynch in a written statement. "Today, their ability to earn money through crime comes to an end, and so does their rule of the streets. This verdict sends the message that that violence and drug-dealing have no place in our communities."
The Christian brothers' defense lawyers had argued that the government's cooperating witnesses, eight in total, lied so they could get assistance from prosecutors that could shave years off their own prison sentences.
"I'm shocked that a jury could believe the testimony of Brian Humphreys and Anthony Britt, both of whom admittedly lied many times," said Jeffrey Chabrowe, who represents Harvey Christian. "I don't understand how the jury could find Mr. Christian guilty based on the testimony of liars like Paul Ford, Anthony Britt and Brian Humphreys."
Chabrowe said he expects to appeal the verdict.
Anthony and Harvey Christian's mother, Janice Pierce, and brother, James Christian, made similar statements outside the courtroom.
"It's totally wrong. I don't understand it. I don't get it. After listening to the evidence, and listening to the eight cooperators that were clearly telling lies, I don't get it. I just don't get it," Ms. Pierce said. "I don't get it, but I know that God knows that they didn't do that.'"
James Christian, meanwhile, said his brothers were a force for good in the community, often breaking up fights before they boiled over.
"I believe it was injustice," James Christian said. "How do they believe these guys? They lied on the stand a thousand times.... They never killed anyone, conspired to kill anyone."
