Erie man sentenced in February 2023 shootings that damaged house, wounded 14-year-old boy

Authorities say an ongoing feud between two Erie gangs fueled a pair of shootings less than two days apart in early February 2023.

One shooting sent numerous bullets into a house, which was occupied at the time and sat next door to the house that was the intended target.

The other sent a 14-year-old boy to the hospital with a gunshot wound to his neck when bullets were sprayed from a passing vehicle near Erie High School.

Both were the result of a then-18-year-old Erie man who, over the course of a few days, hunted down and attempted to shoot a 15-year-old connected to a rival gang, Erie County Chief Deputy District Attorney Jeremy Lightner said in court Friday.

"It is horrifying that this happens in our city," Lightner said.

Kremeer K. Thompson was the main trigger puller when the 14-year-old boy was shot on Cherry Street on Feb. 8, 2023, and he was armed with an assault rifle when the house on Poplar Street was shot up two days earlier, Lightner said as Thompson stood before Erie County Judge John J. Mead for sentencing in three criminal cases Friday morning.

Thompson, who turned 19 in February, pleaded guilty in January to aggravated assault, discharge of a firearm into an occupied structure and carrying a firearm without a license in the Poplar Street shooting; and to attempted homicide, aggravated assault and discharge of a firearm into an occupied structure in the Cherry Street shooting, according to court records.

He additionally pleaded guilty to a felony count of intimidating a witness in a case in which Erie police accused him of reaching out to the 14-year-old shooting victim, after Thompson was jailed, and attempted to get the boy to lie about what had happened.

Mead followed a recommendation reached between prosecutors and Thompson's lawyers in sentencing Thompson on Friday to serve 10½ to 30 years in prison on the charges.

Mead said in sentencing Thompson that he had to balance Thompson's young age and potential for rehabilitation against the seriousness of the crimes. Thompson's actions on those days, Mead told the defendant, not only endangered other young people but citizens safely in their homes having dinner or watching TV who deserve to be safe.

"I apologize," Thompson said in his only remarks during sentencing.

Pair of shootings

According to Lightner's statements in court on Friday and testimony presented at the preliminary hearing for Thompson and two other co-defendants in May, Thompson and others had a connection to the 2-5, a gang from the area of East 25th and German streets. The target of both shootings was reportedly affiliated with Pop Block, a gang from the Poplar Street area, according to statements at both hearings.

In the Feb. 6 shooting, police accused Thompson and others of shooting up the Poplar Street residence after leaving a hotel in Summit Township, where guns were present. Two co-defendants who testified at the May preliminary hearing said the group went to the area of West Second and Poplar streets, where Thompson and another co-defendant got out of the car and went through some yards. Numerous gunshot were then heard before the group fled the area, according to the testimony.

A man who lives in the house that was shot up testified at the hearing that numerous bullets came through windows, walls, paneling and doors in his house. An Erie police detective testified that the house, which was occupied by two people, is next door to the residence of the intended target.

In the Cherry Street shooting, city police accused Thompson and his co-defendants of firing gunshots at a group of people in the area of West 29th and Cherry streets shortly after school let out on the afternoon of Feb. 8, 2023. Shots were fired back at the car as it fled the area. The group got into a traffic accident while leaving the area, and the car was eventually left in the area of East 25th and Holland streets, according to police and court testimony.

Two people who were among the group outside when the shooting occurred were also charged by Erie police in the incident.

Other defendants

Two of Thompson's co-defendants in both shootings, Anfernee K. Graves and Elijah R. Ward, both 22, testified at the preliminary hearing for their co-defendants in May. Graves and Ward are both awaiting trial, according to court documents.

The fourth person charged in both shootings, Jamaica A. Boyd, 20, pleaded guilty in January to attempted homicide and carrying a firearm without a license in the Cherry Street shooting; and to aggravated assault and discharge of a firearm into an occupied structure in the Poplar Street shooting, according to court records. He is scheduled to be sentenced on April 24.

Saron D. Tate, 22, who was charged with the others in the Poplar Street shooting, pleaded guilty in January to a third-degree felony count of conspiracy to commit discharge of a firearm into an occupied structure and was sentenced to 11½ to 23 months in prison and two years of probation, according to court records.

Contact Tim Hahn at thahn@timesnews.com. Follow him on X @ETNhahn.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie PA man sentenced in 2023 shootings that wounded boy, damaged house