Church overflowing for girl

Community leaders have announced a series of anti-crime initiatives.

CLEVELAND (AP) — The mayor and classmates of a 12-year-old girl who was killed by a stray bullet from a street gunfight were among the mourners who overflowed a church Friday for her funeral.

The community response to the slaying of Asteve’e “Cookie” Thomas last Saturday while she walked near her home has provided strength and comfort to her family, said Rev. C. Jay Matthews, senior pastor of Mount Sinai Baptist Church, where the funeral was held.

“Guns weren’t made for display,” Matthews said. “They were made for destruction. What do we do next? We have to say to ourselves that we are not going to shoot anyone anymore. You don’t give a gun to a person who is foaming at the mouth, because you know something is wrong.”

Mayor Frank Jackson’s daughter attended high school with the slain girl’s mother.

“I didn’t come here as the mayor of the city of Cleveland but as one of you, to mourn,” he said to others gathered at the church.

The shooting had prompted a rally in the girl’s Slavic Village neighborhood and community leaders announced a series of anti-crime initiatives Thursday evening, including plans for a gun buyback program, a graffiti removal campaign and a job recruiting drive.

Arrest

A man wounded in the gunfight has been arrested in the girl’s death and a warrant has been issued for a second suspect, who remained at large Friday. The FBI has offered a $5,000 reward for help catching Eric Romel Wilson, 35.

Wilson called television stations earlier in the week and offered a tearful apology to the girl’s family. Wilson said he was robbed at gunpoint and was trying to get his property back when the girl was shot.

Police said Wilson was shooting at James Yhonquea, 20, of Cleveland, who was wounded in the gunfight. Yhonquea was charged Tuesday with aggravated murder.

Wilson was released from police custody 16 months ago on a burglary charge, even though he was wanted by the Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s Department for failing to appear in court for his sentencing on a drug trafficking plea. Police let him go because an outstanding warrant for Wilson was removed from the computer system that tracks fugitives, a discrepancy that the sheriff’s department is investigating, Chief Deputy Doug Burkhart said.