Spectre of youth gang violence looms at Nicholls sentencing

It was impossible to ignore the subject of youth gang violence at the John Sopinka courthouse Friday, as the first part of Brodie Nicholls's sentencing hearing was held for the stabbing death of 14-year-old Jesse Clarke.

Defence lawyer Beth Bromberg spent mostof the day arguing that Nicholls was a young man driven to one burst of violence because of a tragic past while Clarke's family grieved openly for a child they'll never get to see grow up.

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Though Clarke's family and friends denounced the defence's submission for a three-year sentence with credit for time served, both sides did agree on something that youth gang violence is destroying lives in some Hamilton neighbourhoods.

I don't get to see my son graduate high school. I don't get to see my son get married. I don't get the luxury of grandchildren. I don't get any of that.- Katherine Lutz, Jesse Clarke's stepmother

"None of our kids feel safe. They're being bullied to join these gangs," said Clarke's stepmother Katherine Lutz, who emphasized that Clarke was not part of a gang himself. "It has led to our family's destruction."

"I don't get to see my son graduate high school. I don't get to see my son get married. I don't get the luxury of grandchildren. I don't get any of that."

Nicholls, 18, was originally charged with second-degree murder. He pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter in June.

Armed conflict escalated

Clarke, 14, was in a group of about 10 young people who confronted Nicholls outside his east Hamilton home last August. According to an agreed statement of facts, many of those gathered described themselves as loosely affiliated with the BNA/LOM gangs.

The group was armed with pipes, sticks and bats, Bromberg said in court. It's unclear why they had assembled there.

Things escalated after Nicholls grabbed a knife from the homeand started swinging it at the group. After he was hit in the neck with a pole, the confrontation moved down a side street. As people were dispersing, Clarke was stabbed in the chest.

In her submissions, Bromberg told the court that Nicholls was "totally failed by Canadian society." He was born with fetal alcohol syndrometo a mother who "worked the streets," she said.

He dealt with abuse and poverty throughout his life, while bouncing from foster homes and group homes. Bromberg said he is developmentally delayed, and is only educated at an elementary school level.

Despite that, she said, Nicholls does not have a violent or criminal history. The only crime he has ever been charged with is breaking into a local chip truck to steal some change and some iced tea, she said.

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He was also arrested for breaching his bail conditions after he returned to pay back the change and apologize which was contrary to his bail, she said.

Social workers have described Nicholls as polite and well mannered, Bromberg said. "The abuse that he suffered was just tremendous," she said. "He grew up as a young boy who just had absolutely nothing."

'I don't want to send that message to our community and our kids'

That means little to Clarke's family, who are still clearly hurting. "Her suggestions [about sentencing] are just ludicrous," Lutz said. The Crown is seeking an eight to 10 year sentence in a penitentiary, compared to the defence's three years in a provincial institution.

Lutz said a shorter sentence would tell young people that this kind of behaviour is OK. "I don't want to send that message to our community and to our kids," she said.

Bromberg, for her part, told the court that youth gang activity is a problem in this neighbourhood though police and officials are hesitant to use the word "gang" officially. "The initial aggressors in this were a youth gang in the neighbourhood," she said.

Melissa Mercuri a family friend who was one of a host of people who gave victim impact statements Friday told the court that Clarke's death has fundamentally changed the community.

"It put fear into our kids," she said. Now, many are afraid to go out on their own, and "have to carry something with them."

"We just want our kids and our streets back."

Nicholl's sentencing hearing continues on Oct. 1, with formal submissions from the Crown expected.

adam.carter@cbc.ca