The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a Gary man’s conviction last year in connection with a 2017 drug-linked car wash slaying but rebuked prosecutors for wanting a narrow review of the case.
Devontae Martin, then 30, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Philip Simon in Hammond to life in prison in October 2023 for using a firearm to commit murder and 20 years for conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine. Both sentences ran concurrently.
He and Taquan “Boonie” Clarke were indicted in connection with the July 28, 2017, shooting death of Kevin Hood, 43, of Gary. A jury convicted both men.
Both were part of Teddia Caldwell’s drug ring, which targeted Hood, a rival businessman. The original plan was to “‘kidnap him, and hold him for ransom’ until he turned over the drugs,” court records show.
Hood was killed during a robbery outside his business, Shine On Hand Car Wash, near 15th and Massachusetts streets, according to Gary Police. According to the superseding indictment, Martin drove through the car wash with an AK-47-style rifle to rob Hood of money and cocaine. He jumped out of the vehicle. The two got into a physical fight, during which Martin’s gun was discharged, records state.
When they were fighting, Clarke ran up and shot Hood dead, according to Martin’s fourth superseding indictment.
In a 3-0 decision, the court upheld Martin’s conviction. But it rejected prosecutors’ argument to only look for “plain error” – i.e. something that egregiously stood out.
“(B)y undertaking our own independent review of the sentencing hearing, rejecting the government’s invitation to review only for plain error. We have held many times over in recent years that a defendant like Martin need not object at sentencing to an error believed to occur during sentencing itself to preserve the issue for…review on appeal,” Circuit Judge Michael Scudder wrote on Dec. 2.
“We are running low on patience with the lack of adherence to our precedent in this area,” he added.
mcolias@post-trib.com