|
|
| Released From Jail, Former Gang Leader Begins New Life |
| By Rocky Mountain News |
| Published: 08/06/2003 |
|
Along with their rivals, the Bloods, the Crips were responsible for a wave of violence and crack cocaine sales that ravaged the city during the early 1990s. Eight years ago, Asberry was convicted of assaulting Denver gang unit officer Paul Baca. Asberry spit at him, kicked him and threatened his family. A Denver prosecutor called him 'a powerful predator.' For that felony, Asberry drew an unusual six-year sentence. A Denver district judge ordered him shipped to California to take part in a program run by former NFL football great and actor Jim Brown. 'By sending you out of state, I'm saving you or a police officer from dying,' Judge Lynne Hufnagel told Asberry at his sentencing. But when he flunked that program and was arrested in Los Angeles carrying a gun, Asberry was returned to a Colorado prison. Recently, state corrections officials released Asberry from prison in Cañon City after he finished the remainder of his six-year sentence. On Thursday, Asberry, now a 33-year-old ex-convict, was a free man, walking the 16th Street Mall, looking for work. And today, thanks to help from the Rev. Leon Kelly, a longtime anti-gang activist, Asberry starts a new job at a Starbucks coffee shop owned by former basketball great Earvin 'Magic' Johnson. 'It's wonderful,' Asberry said as he sat in the sweltering office of Kelly's Open Door Youth Gang Alternatives. 'There ain't no word in the dictionary to describe how I'm feeling. But it's a good feeling.' Whether Asberry can make better use of this opportunity than previous ones remains to be seen. But Kelly, who has known Asberry since he was 14, believes the ex-gang member once known as 'Cyco' has matured. 'I'm encouraged that he's encouraged,' Kelly said. Asberry said he is through with the gang lifestyle of drugs, guns and violence. He is willing to tell anyone who listens what a waste of time it was. 'I want to be Mike, not Cyc,' he said. Most people assumed that his old gang nickname was short for 'psycho.' Today, Asberry said it was more like 'Cycle,' meaning a pattern of repetitive behavior. 'A large part of that was me destroying my neighborhood,' he said. 'At that time, I was lost.' 'It's not worth it,' Asberry said of the gang life. 'I lived it, so my experience speaks for itself. . . . It ain't nothing but death and destruction.' Asberry said he holds no ill will toward Denver police or Baca himself. For his part, Baca said the feeling is mutual. 'As far as I'm concerned, that was then and this is now,' said Baca, now a detective in the department's assault unit. 'There's no ill will. It was my job. He just happened to be somebody that we ran across a lot because of his activity.' Kelly called Bette Phelps, the manager of the Starbucks on East Colfax near Kalamath and asked her if she had an opening for Asberry. She consulted with her district manager, Le-John Roybal, and they agreed to hire Asberry on a part-time basis. Roybal said he, too, was a risk when Starbucks hired him as a part-time barista seven years ago. 'I was 20, hair down to the middle of my back in three different colors,' he said. But he feels Asberry met the qualifications for the work. 'To be honest, Mike was treated as any other applicant.' The Starbucks where Asberry works is one of 43 coffee shops co-owned by Magic Johnson. The partnership, called Urban Coffee Opportunities LLC, tries to locate stores in ethnically diverse urban neighborhoods. |
advertise
|
privacy policy
|
add URL
|
about us
|
terms/disclaimer
|
contact us
|
join our team
|
help
Comments:
No comments have been posted for this article.
Login to let us know what you think