Kid Ugly - 2-11-2007 at 01:16 PM
http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070211/NEWS/...
Arrest made in fatal fight outside club
Brooklyn man with ties to "FSU" gang is charged
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 02/11/07
BY ALEX BIESE
AND ZACH PATBERG
STAFF WRITERS
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A 34-year-old Brooklyn man associated with the FSU gang was arrested in Asbury Park on Friday night in connection with the death of a man outside Club
Deep following an argument over a T-shirt, authorities said.
Alexander J. Franklin, of 74th Street in Brooklyn, was charged with manslaughter in the Jan. 14 death of James Morrison, 25, which occurred outside
the club on Second Avenue, according to a news release from Monmouth County Prosecutor Luis A. Valentin.
Superior Court Judge James J. McGann on Saturday set Franklin's bail at $300,000.
"I'm just glad the person that did this is off the street,"
said the victim's mother, Lorrie Morrison. "Now we'll have to wait for a court to decide what will happen to him."
The arrest follows a nearly monthlong investigation into Morrison's death. When asked Saturday if any more arrests were expected, First Assistant
Prosecutor Peter Warshaw said all he could say is "the investigation remains active."
According to the news release, at approximately 5:50 p.m. Jan. 14, officers from the Asbury Park Police Department responded to the club after a 911
call about a fight. Upon arrival, Officer Cynthia Yost found Morrison lying on the ground in front of the club unconscious, unresponsive and bleeding
from the back of his head.
Morrison was pronounced dead less than an hour later. An autopsy revealed that he died as a result of blunt force trauma to the back of his head. The
Asbury Park Police Department and the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office Major Crimes Unit launched an investigation.
Authorities found that Morrison and his friends were inside the club when they became involved in an altercation with a number of people relating to a
T-shirt worn by one of Morrison's friends, the Prosecutor's Office said. Morrison was then asked by security to leave the club and was escorted out.
Morrison's friends began walking to the parking lot when, according to the prosecutor, Franklin approached Morrison and punched him on the right side
of his face. Morrison fell backward and struck his head on the sidewalk. Franklin immediately fled the scene.
The joint investigation eventually led to the arrest of Franklin, who is associated with the gang "FSU," Warshaw said.
The initials stand for Friends Stand United, or two profanities followed by the word "up." Members of the gang once were responsible for driving out
neo-Nazi elements in the Boston hard-core punk scene of the mid-1980s. FSU is now a bizarre gang of young men who assault individuals at hard-core
shows in dozens of cities across the country. Many of the bands that were slated to play Jan. 14 at the club are affiliated with FSU, or are known to
attract gang members to their shows, according to sources with the New Jersey State Police Organized Crime Control Bureau.
Those who attended the show with Morrison say the brawl that led to his death was touched off by someone in the club taking offense to a Lynyrd
Skynyrd shirt featuring a Confederate flag that was worn by one of Morrison's friends.
The arrest brought some level of relief to Morrison's family.
Lorrie Morrison said the authorities told her a week ago that they were planning to arrest a suspect. She said police found an FSU key chain on
Franklin, despite his denying involvement in the gang.
Both she and the victim's grandparents expressed appreciation to the police and news media for the speedy arrest and for keeping the case in the
public eye.
"Nothing is going to bring him back," said Carol Zemartis, James Morrison's grandmother. "But I'm so glad they got somebody, and it is gang-related,
no matter what anyone says."
In the news release, Prosecutor Valentin said, "By following every lead and interviewing many individuals who possibly knew relevant information,
police were able to arrest the man whose gratuitous violent act recklessly caused the death of Mr. Morrison."
If convicted of manslaughter, Franklin would face a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. He would have to serve 8 1/2 years before being eligible
for parole, under New Jersey's No Early Release Act.
Larry Fishman, chief operating officer of Asbury Partners, had said that Club Deep is not owned by Asbury Partners but by AP Venture Holdings.
Fishman had said he could not state the relationship between the two companies but would check with his comptroller.
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This story contains information from previous Asbury Park Press articles
BDx13 - 2-11-2007 at 02:14 PM
i'm gonna leave this post here as kind of an official news update on the story, but lock the thread preventing any further comments. if you've been
following the story, i'm sure you've read about the role messageboards and myspace have played in the investigation. given that, and the sensitive
nature of this tragic event, i really don't want our site to be among those spreading internet hearsay. i hope you understand.