It Began With a Joy Ride

Police Say SE Feuds Set Off Deadly Chain

Five teenagers, cruising Southeast Washington in a stolen car. A U.S. Park Police officer spotted them, and the chase was on.

The pursuit lasted about two miles, coming to a halt when the youths crashed the stolen Dodge Magnum wagon into a parked vehicle at 19th Street and Trenton Place SE. One teenager was caught, and the others scattered quickly. Police said they found a gun inside the car.

That's how it began Saturday, June 30. A car theft. A chase. The crash. Then a beating. And gunfire. Within eight hours, three law enforcement sources said, the events drew in an innocent victim, a 24-year-old who was pursuing a career in health care and was a mother of two.

The sources said the youths in the stolen car were from Robinson Place SE, a neighborhood that has a history of violent beefs with crews from Parkland, Barry Farm, Congress Park and other Southeast locales. The fights have been going on for so long that some of the combatants have no idea what started it all, according to police and community activists.

What happened June 30 shows how one slight leads to another and another until everything blows up -- a cycle police say repeats itself in many parts of the city. Joy riding, a crime that takes place nearly every day in the District, set it all in motion this time, the law enforcement sources said.

The crash took place about 4 p.m. on the edge of Parkland, a risky place for the joy riders from Robinson Place to seek cover. One of the youths managed to avoid Park Police by hiding in a nearby apartment building. But two Parkland teenagers recognized him, the law enforcement sources said.

They beat him up.

The teenager, smarting from the assault, told others from Robinson Place what happened, according to the law enforcement sources. They spoke on condition of anonymity because police have yet to piece together exactly who did what.

But this much was clear, the sources said: Revenge had to be exacted.

A Respite Ended by Gunfire

Tiara Monique Merriweather loved to play cards, especially spades. On the night of June 30, she was doing just that while visiting family and friends in the Huntington Park apartment complex in Parkland. Merriweather, a lifelong District resident, had a lot of friends.

Many knew her from Ballou Senior High School, where as a student she had run track and been a majorette. Later, she helped coach the girls' basketball team.

A single mother, Merriweather devoted much of her time to her children, Derek, 5, and Falencia, 3. Now she was taking a breather and unwinding on the warm summer night.