FAR ROCKAWAY RESIDENT PLEADS GUILTY TO CRIMINAL POSSESSION OF A WEAPON; FACES SEVEN YEARS IN PRISON

Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown today announced that a 28-year-old Far Rockaway resident has pled guilty to criminal possession of a weapon, a handgun he admitted firing in a March 2000 gun battle at the Redfern Houses which resulted in the death of a tenant patrol volunteer.

District Attorney Brown identified the defendant as Johnathon Whitmore, 28, of 1357 Dickens Street, Far Rockaway. The defendant pled guilty to Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree before Supreme Court Justice Robert J. Hanophy who indicated that he would sentence the defendant on April 18, 2000 to seven years in prison.

District Attorney Brown said, "The guilty plea in this case sends a clear and unmistakable message that gun violence is a serious public safety threat that will not be tolerated. While the handgun that the defendant fired did not cause the death of tenant patrol volunteer Maria Medina, it did threaten the lives of numerous other bystanders. The prosecution of this case demonstrates our commitment to rid Queens County of illegal guns."

According to the charges, the defendant was involved in a gun battle at the Redfern Houses with Tullie Hyman, 21, 69-41 Decosta Avenue, Arverne, Queens who was convicted in March of murder in Ms. Medina’s death. Whitmore was standing near a building when a bullet fired at him by Hyman crashed through a metal door in the building’s lobby and struck the victim fatally wounding her. Defendant Derrick Harris, 33, is awaiting trial for murder in the case. A fourth defendant was acquitted.

Assistant District Attorney Robert J. Schwerdt of District Attorney Brown's Homicide Investigations Bureau prosecuted the case under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Peter T. Reese, Bureau Chief, and under the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for Major Crimes Gregory L. Lasak.