Willie Clark |
DENVER - Guilty on all charges. That's what a jury decided when it convicted suspected gang member Willie Clark Thursday of killing Denver Broncos player Darrent Williams in a drive-by shooting on New Year's Day 2007.
The jury in Denver returned the verdict after an 11-day trial and a day and a half of deliberation. Clark was convicted on all 21 charges he faced including two counts of first-degree murder, one for the murder of Williams after deliberation and one for murder with "extreme indifference." Also included were 16 counts of attempted murder, one each for the surviving passengers in the Hummer limousine that Williams was in when he was shot in the neck.
Jurors sat silently as Judge Christina Habas announced the verdict in a courtroom packed with friends and family of both the victim and the defendant. Clark didn't have much reaction to the verdict, other than a slight head shake.
Clark, 26, faces a sentence of life in prison. There was no immediate word on an appeal.
Williams was 24 years old when he was killed on New Year's Day 2007. The shooting happened just a few hours after the Denver Broncos 2006 season ended. Prosecutors said Clark fired the fatal shots from an SUV that pulled up beside a rented limo carrying Williams and some friends.
Prosecutors said Clark was angry over an altercation involving friends of Williams and friends of Clark that occurred in a nightclub just before the shooting, which happened at 11th Ave. and Speer Blvd.
Defense attorneys said Clark was being made a scapegoat and wasn't even in the SUV. He faces sentencing April 30.
"Nothing can ever bring Darrent Williams back or ease the suffering for (his mother) Rosalind and her grandchildren," Denver Broncos President and CEO Pat Bowlen said in a statement. "But after three long years, it is very gratifying to see closure brought to this case. This process has been extremely difficult for the Williams family, his friends and teammates, this community, and the entire Denver Broncos organization."
"I would like to praise the long and hard work of the Denver Police Department and the Denver District Attorney's Office," Bowlen said. "I also want to thank the Denver community for the overwhelming support that both the Williams family and the Broncos have received during this unimaginable tragedy.
"Darrent's legacy will live on for all of us in the Broncos organization, and the outstanding work done each day at the Darrent Williams Memorial Teen Center is a tribute to his impact on this community. Our hearts continue to go out to the entire Williams family."
The jury in Denver returned the verdict after an 11-day trial and a day and a half of deliberation. Clark was convicted on all 21 charges he faced including two counts of first-degree murder, one for the murder of Williams after deliberation and one for murder with "extreme indifference." Also included were 16 counts of attempted murder, one each for the surviving passengers in the Hummer limousine that Williams was in when he was shot in the neck.
Jurors sat silently as Judge Christina Habas announced the verdict in a courtroom packed with friends and family of both the victim and the defendant. Clark didn't have much reaction to the verdict, other than a slight head shake.
Clark, 26, faces a sentence of life in prison. There was no immediate word on an appeal.
Williams was 24 years old when he was killed on New Year's Day 2007. The shooting happened just a few hours after the Denver Broncos 2006 season ended. Prosecutors said Clark fired the fatal shots from an SUV that pulled up beside a rented limo carrying Williams and some friends.
Prosecutors said Clark was angry over an altercation involving friends of Williams and friends of Clark that occurred in a nightclub just before the shooting, which happened at 11th Ave. and Speer Blvd.
Defense attorneys said Clark was being made a scapegoat and wasn't even in the SUV. He faces sentencing April 30.
"Nothing can ever bring Darrent Williams back or ease the suffering for (his mother) Rosalind and her grandchildren," Denver Broncos President and CEO Pat Bowlen said in a statement. "But after three long years, it is very gratifying to see closure brought to this case. This process has been extremely difficult for the Williams family, his friends and teammates, this community, and the entire Denver Broncos organization."
"I would like to praise the long and hard work of the Denver Police Department and the Denver District Attorney's Office," Bowlen said. "I also want to thank the Denver community for the overwhelming support that both the Williams family and the Broncos have received during this unimaginable tragedy.
"Darrent's legacy will live on for all of us in the Broncos organization, and the outstanding work done each day at the Darrent Williams Memorial Teen Center is a tribute to his impact on this community. Our hearts continue to go out to the entire Williams family."
