4 arrests. No murder charges. Coast woman ‘cannot rest’ without justice for ‘Boolee’
Marcello “Boolee” English was shot and killed after he and a friend met up with some other teens to allegedly sell them an assault weapon, according to Jackson County Sheriff Mike Ezell.
But something went wrong when English, 19, and friend Derrick Craft, 18, both of St. Martin, showed up to make the sale in the early-morning hours of April 27.
An “altercation” occurred in the midst of the gun exchange, Ezell said, and shots were fired.
By 1:30 a.m., sheriff’s deputies were responding to a report of a body at the intersection of Amhurst Street and Hamilton Drive.
English was dead and Craft had been shot and critically injured.
But since then, no one has been charged with murder.
Investigators say they want to make sure justice is served, but the family is outraged, saying race is a factor because three of the four teens arrested are white.
Since the shooting, Christian Kennedy, 19, and Caden Walker, 16, both of St. Martin, have been arrested on charges of aggravated assault and tampering with physical evidence. Kennedy has an additional charge of directing a minor to commit a felony. Walker was charged as an adult.
Two others, a 17-year-old from Biloxi and a 15-year-old from Ocean Springs, were arrested on a charge of accessory after the fact. Their bonds were set at $25,000 each.
All of the teens have been released from jail, including Walker and Kennedy, whose bonds were reduced to $50,000 each. Walker’s bond was initially set at $250,000, and Kennedy’s total bond on all three charges was $260,000.
So far, none of the suspects have been charged in English’s death. Instead, Kennedy and Walker are accused of shooting and injuring Craft, according to the criminal affidavit.
The Sheriff’s Office consulted with the District Attorney’s Office on the case, and a decision was made to present the evidence to a grand jury to decide if anyone will face upgrades charges of murder.
English’s family believes no one has been charged in his killing because he was black and the majority of teens accused in the case are white, except for Walker.
A matter of race
Since the shooting, English’s family has been reaching out to residents and potential witnesses and doing some of their own investigating to try to find out what ultimately led to the killing.
They are grieving, but believe the stage has already been set to make it appear Marcello English was to blame for his own death.
“I feel like we are in for an uphill battle, and I already know from some of the very crass comments that were posted on my (Facebook) page that they will no doubt try to make Boolee (English) out to be a dangerous monster that he wasn’t,” Elizabeth English, Marcello English’s grandmother, said. “Boolee — just like a lot of us — may not be perfect, but no matter what he didn’t deserve to be slaughtered and left like garbage in the street.”
She also cited other cases where a killing occurred involving a white victim and black suspects and how arrests were made almost immediately and long before any grand jury action.
She pointed to a case in Harrison County, where five black teens from Biloxi were arrested on capital murder charges within 24 hours of the killing of a 16-year-old white girl. Grand jury action is still pending in that case.
“So, my question is why is my black grandchild’s life worth less than the white girl’s life?” English said. “Had this gone the other way and one of those white boys had died, my black grandchild would have been immediately charged with murder, if not capital murder, had a bond set at a million or better, would still be in jail, and facing the death penalty. So, I have a lot of questions and I cannot rest until we have answers and those young men are held accountable.”
The family has heard suggestions that English was shot in self defense.
“If it truly was a self defense, then why didn’t the (alleged) killers go to the police to begin with?” English said.
“We are not going to stop until we get to the bottom of what really happened. I don’t think we have the truth yet.”
English’s family went to the Sheriff’s Office this week and met with the sheriff and investigators.
Video evidence
After the shooting, authorities seized a video that captured footage of what happened the night English and Craft were shot, but the family has not been able to see the footage.
Ezell is hoping to make that happen.
“I gave them (the English family) my word we are going to investigate this thing and we are going to do everything we can to ensure justice is served,” Ezell said. “It’s the right thing to do, and that’s what we are doing.”
Ezell said his investigators are working non-stop to find out exactly what happened.
“The investigation is still ongoing and we are still working with the DA’s Office and following up on leads to make sure justice is served for all in this case,” Ezell said.
District Attorney Angel Myers McIlrath declined to comment because the case is pending.
A book bag, cash and guns
In the aftermath of the shooting, other evidence was collected that shed more light on the case.
A book bag containing $3,301 in cash along with marijuana and some handguns had been hidden in a wooded area on Kipling Place in St. Martin.
In court papers filed by the District Attorney’s Office, the items are described as key evidence in a “major crime” that occurred the same morning as the seizure.
Kennedy and Walker both claimed ownership of the bag and its belongings, the records say, and both listed their home address on Kipling Place, where the book bag and other items had been hidden away.
Prosecutors filed a forfeiture request to seize the money that allegedly came from illegal activity.
High bonds
All four suspects were held on high bonds after their arrests, but each had attorneys plea on their behalf to get them lowered so they could afford to get out of jail.
Kennedy’s attorney, Keith Miller, said in court papers that his client was a lifelong resident of South Mississippi, had relatives here, had no felony record, and was not a flight risk.
Walker’s bond was reduced after his attorney, Tyler Cox, said his client was lifelong resident of the Coast who has a stellar reputation for good grades and good behavior at Ocean Springs High School. Walker is set to graduate high school in 2021.
The attorneys pointed out that Walker and Kennedy had not been accused in other felony offense in their pleas to reduce what they called “excessive” bonds.
County Court Judge Mark Watts reduced the bonds after reviewing the arguments.
Meanwhile, English and her family are outraged over the release of those accused in the case.
While they are free, she said, her family has had to spend time burying a loved one and picking out gravestone for his burial site.
“We are expecting no justice, but we will be rallying for Justice 4 Boolee in the coming weeks as we await this grand jury meeting,” English said. “We have so many questions and keep hearing conflicting stories. Boolee’s life mattered just as much as anyone else — more to all of us. But we will keep pressing for justice.”
This story was originally published May 22, 2020 at 5:45 AM.
