Marcus Hunter | Homicide Watch Trenton

A year after Marcus Hunter’s death, family still searching for answers

Penny Ray — Sun, 09 Feb 2014 13:26:29 -0500

: Hunter/Robinson family, Feb. 6, 2014

: Catina Hunter at Marcus Hunter’s gravesite

: Quancine Robinson at Marcus Hunter’s gravesite

The last time Catina Hunter spoke with her 16-year-old son Marcus Hunter was around 2 p.m. on Feb. 11, 2013. The conversation lasted about five minutes. Hunter told his mother that he would soon join her and about 20 other people for his sister’s birthday party at his grandmother’s house on West Hanover Street.

“Well, I’m just sitting here waiting for you to come,” Catina Hunter recalls telling her son.

And then they hung up. She never imagined that would be their last conversation.

Marcus Hunter continued playing video games in the family’s Rossell Avenue home. His father Quancine Robinson arrived shortly before 2:30 p.m., and after questioning why Hunter hadn’t left for the party, gave him some money to purchase soda from the store. Hunter then ran out the house, and a couple minutes later, Robinson heard gunshots.

“When I heard the gunshots, I didn’t expect Marcus to be the victim; so, I waited a couple minutes,” Robinson said in a recent conversation. “Then I walked outside and looked down the street and didn’t see him. So, I jumped the gate and walked down the sidewalk, and that’s when I found his body lying on the ground.”

Like any father would, Robinson ran to his son and started shaking him. But Hunter didn’t move. He suffered multiple gunshot wounds, including one to the head. Hunter was pronounced dead on that Beakes Street sidewalk.

“I couldn’t believe it,” Robinson said. “I started crying, and then I asked a lady in the window to call police. I don’t like reliving that moment, but the memories are constantly there. It’s hard to sleep.”

As described by his family, Hunter was a smart, quiet and humble young man who visited his grandmother everyday. He played football and basketball, created music and he liked to dance, family say. And he always had a smile on his face.

“Marcus was a sweet kid,” his grandmother Ida Hunter said last week. “I know with all my heart that he didn’t deserve this.”

In the year since Hunter’s death, the Hunter/Robinson family has emotionally struggled. But they have grown closer as a result. They visit Hunter’s gravesite as often as possible, sometimes on a whim, but for every major holiday. And since Hunter is a fan of LeBron James, when the Miami Heat won its second NBA championship, the family visited his gravesite to give him the good news.

“I also tell him about the (Philadelphia) Eagles,” Ida Hunter said. “We talk to him like he’s still here. And we tell him not worry about anything because we’ll make sure justice is served.”

This year, Hunter’s sister Rayshonda Hunter will be 25 years old, an age that all of the family expected Marcus to reach.

“He didn’t get a chance to live his life,” his cousin Precious Hunter said.

And the family will celebrate Rayshonda’s birthday, while celebrating Marcus’ life.

“It’s gonna be hard to deal with,” Rayshonda Hunter said. “I think one day I’ll again look at my birthday as a celebration of my life. Maybe in a couple years, but not now, though.”

Mercer County Prosecutors said last week that there have been no new developments in the investigation of Hunter’s death, but police are actively working the case.

“Every time the phone rings, I pray that it’s the detectives saying they have found Marcus’ killer,” Ida Hunter said. “I hope someone will come forward with a tip for police. His death really took a lot out of the whole family.”

Prosecutors would not comment on a suspected motivation for Hunter’s murder, but Robinson said it may have been the result of a dispute between two city neighborhoods, a dispute in which Hunter was not involved.

“He wasn’t in a gang and he didn’t hang out in the streets,” Robinson said. “If he wasn’t home, he was at his grandmother’s house.”

On Thursday, Feb. 6, Robinson wrote a letter to Hunter; it states:

Dear Marcus,

We know you’re watching down on us and we want you to know that we truly love and miss you a lot. We may one day find closure, but the pain will forever be there. Through the grace of God, we will stay strong. You will forever remain in our hearts and minds.

Love always,

The Hunter/Robinson family.

Anyone with information about Hunter’s murder is asked to call the Mercer County Homicide Task Force at (609) 989-6406, or the Trenton police confidential tip line at (609) 989-3663.

Trenton Crime Stoppers is offering a cash reward for tips that lead to an arrest. Call them at (609) 278-TIPS (8477), or text information and keyword TCSTIPS to 274637. Text STOP to 274637 to cancel. Text HELP to 274637 for help. All tipsters are treated as anonymous.

Shooting victim pays respects to homicide victim

Brian Dzenis — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 20:06:18 -0500

Jamel Robinson keeps a close eye on the makeshift memorial for Marcus Hunter on the corner of Passaic and Calhoun Streets. A white sheet that reads "SPG RIP MARK 1" has been tied to a chain linked fence at the intersection, with a marker left by the sidewalk for people passing by to write messages. It's actually the second memorial erected in his honor, the first one had caught on fire.

"The wind blew the candles into the sheet and set it on fire," Robinson said.
Hunter, who lived on Spring Street, died on Monday from a gunshot wound to the head near the intersection of New Willow and Beakes Street, near Martin Luther King avenue.
He was 16 years old.

"He didn't have the chance to live his life," Robinson said.
Robinson, 35, is a shooting victim himself. A few years ago, Robinson had inherited a building in Philadelphia from a family member and a dispute between him and a tenant turned ugly and resulted in Robinson getting shot six times.
Hunter's sheet is not the only signs of untimely death on the intersection. "RIP Ben" is spray painted into the sidewalk in reference to Benjamin DaVila Jr., who died in front of his grandparents after getting shot in a drive-by shooting in October of last year.
Hunter is city's fourth homicide victim and 26th overall shooting victim of 2013. He is also the second juvenile to fall to gun violence within the past three months. Joshua Moore, 17, was shot several times on Pennington and Reservoir Streets in December while fleeing in a van from an unknown assailant. His death was part of a spike in shootings that saw six people being wounded in two separate shootings on the 200 block of Spring Street. At the time, police sources had told the Trentonian that the shootings were part of an on-going gang battle between Spring Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, with one them being considered retaliation for Moore's death.
It's unclear if Hunter's death was also a result of gang hostility, given the previous bad blood between the two areas. City police have not released a motive or information about suspects in his death. Robinson declined to speculate on the motive.
"I don't know, I'm 35 years old, I have kids and I'm not apart of this gang business," he said. "It's just sad how we're losing all these young guys."
Anyone with information regarding the homicide is asked to call the Trenton Police confidential tipline at (609) 989-3663 or the Crimestoppers tipline at (609) 278-8477.
Those wishing to text a tip regarding the shootings can send a message labelled TCSTIPS to Trenton Crime Stoppers at 274637.

Trenton teenager killed near Donnelly Homes

Brian Dzenis — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 17:25:17 -0500

TRENTON - A 16-year-old boy was shot in the head on New Willow and Beakes Streets Monday afternoon.

Around 2:30 p.m., residents in the area of the Donnelly Homes reported hearing four to six shots near the intersection.
Marcus Hunter, of Trenton, was shot by a gate to a paved lot, according to police.

Police had his body covered with a sheet and set up black temporary barriers to obscure it from view as they combed the scene for evidence.

A few of Hunter's family members, including a woman identified as his mother, were present at the scene, but they declined comment.

One distraught woman could be heard wailing from within the Donnelly Homes' grounds.

Hunter's death marks the fourth homicide of 2013 and the 26th shooting victim this year.

Detective Michael Kruchinsky of the Trenton Police and Gary Wasko of the Mercer County Prosecutor's Office are investigating the murder.

Anyone with information regarding the homicide is asked to call the Trenton Police confidential tipline at (609) 989-3663 or the Crimestoppers tipline at (609) 278-8477.

Those wishing to text a tip regarding the shootings can send a message labelled TCSTIPS to Trenton Crime Stoppers at 274637.