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Airman on trial in beating death of soldier

JACKSONVILLE, Ark. — A court-martial at the Little Rock Air Force Base is to decide the fate of an airman charged in the 2005 beating death of an Army sergeant at a U.S. military base in Germany, in what prosecutors say resulted from a gang initiation.

The proceeding for Staff Sgt. Jerome A. Jones, 25, began last week; testimony was scheduled to resume Monday before Judge Advocate General Lt. Col. Nancy Paul. Prosecutors allege Jones and others stationed at Kaiserslaughtern beat Sgt. Juwan Johnson of Baltimore before he was found dead in his room July 4, 2005, at the base in Germany.

Jones has pleaded not guilty to numerous violations, including involuntary manslaughter, three counts of conspiracy, two counts of obstruction of justice, and one count each of wrongful use or possession of a controlled substance, failure to obey an order or regulation, and being an accessory after the fact.

Jones is a C-130 cargo plane crew chief with the 314th Airlift Wing at the air base north of Little Rock.

In opening statements for the prosecution, Capt. Peter Kezar described an initiation ritual used by the Gangster Disciples street gang, in which new members must endure a six-minute beating.

Kezar said Johnson’s beating escalated that night from reckless to a free-for-all. The beating reportedly occurred in a park pavilion outside Kaiserslaughtern. Kezar told the court-martial that witnesses will place Jones at that pavilion.

The military alleges that Jones is a member of the Gangster Disciples and that he helped raise money and recruit members for the gang. The military claims the gang advocates the use of force or violence in violation of military law. Court documents also claim that Jones tried to persuade a witness not to testify, that he helped another suspect hide and that he used marijuana.

Capt. Jeremy Emmert, a defense lawyer, said Jones did not kill Johnson and does not belong to a violent gang. He said the defense also has evidence that Jones was not at the park that night.

What prosecutors call a gang was a “benign” group for brotherhood, Emmert said.

Also, Emmert said, “Each (government witness) has their own motive to lie about why they say Sergeant Jones was there.”

Others accused in Johnson’s beating are either serving sentences or facing a court-martial.