Gang member testifies in Brooklyn murder trial

October 4, 2017 By Paul Frangipane Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Reginald Brown is being tried at Brooklyn Supreme Court for allegedly murdering his fellow gang member. Eagle file photo by Rob Abruzzese

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A former gang member testified Wednesday in the trial of an alleged gang member accused of murdering a fellow member.

Taurean Williams, 26, took the stand at Brooklyn Supreme Court and told jurors that Derron Clarke, who was murdered, stole his credit card info and spent $200 months before he died.

“It killed me. I was very hurt by it,” Williams said about the theft.

Williams agreed that Clarke, his close friend, needed to “get dealt with,” but didn’t expect that Reginald Brown, an alleged fellow member of the Gangster Disciples, would kill Clarke in retaliation.

Brown, 29, is charged with murder, manslaughter and gun possession for allegedly shooting at Clarke five times in the street, killing him with a shot to the neck on Nov. 7, 2010 in Flatlands, prosecutors said.

Clarke’s mother shook and kept her head down as Williams recollected the night her son was killed on East 48th Street by Avenues J and K.

As they were all walking down the dark street, Brown allegedly tried to give Williams a gun to shoot Clarke, but Williams refused before Brown reportedly opened fire on Clarke, who was steps in front of him.

“I just watched Derron get killed,” Williams said in court.

Defense attorney Samuel Karliner focused his questions on Williams’ criminal life in the gang, which included gun possession and fraudulent credit card convictions.

Williams, who was 13 when he joined the gang, admitted to the crimes but denied the claim that he would hurt Clarke for the theft.

Karliner objected to talk of his client being in the gang and said during opening statements of the trial on Monday that Williams’ testimony would be untrustworthy because of his criminal past.

The trial is scheduled to continue Thursday.