Written by Nate Gartrell
Federal prosecutors in New York have formally asked a judge to impose a sentence between 17 and 19 years in prison for a Gorilla Stone gang member who they say shot a Crip on Casanova's orders.
Jarrett "Jayecee" Crisler Jr., 27, pleaded guilty to attempted murder and a firearms trafficking conspiracy last January and is set to be sentenced on September 30 by U.S. District Judge Philip Halpern. He faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years, according to court records.
Prosecutors have identified Crisler as the man who shot two men at Casanova's 33rd birthday party in Miami in October 2020. Before the shooting, Casanova allegedly identified one of the victims as a rival Crip member and asked him, "You wanna die tonight?"
"The defendant showed no remorse for his shooting, instead bragging that he was a '#GoodAim,' and 'I ain’t miss a shot . . . Greatest shot in the world . . . Lol.' And when he learned that the victims survived, he laughed about going back to the club to finish the job," prosecutors wrote in a sentencing brief for Crisler.
Prosecutors have also labeled Crisler the operator of "a highly organized" illegal firearms trafficking ring that sold high-powered assault weapons and silencers between New York and Florida.
The defense has asked Halpern to sentence Crisler to the mandatory minimum 10-year term, writing in court records that Crisler experienced a troubled childhood that included surviving a vicious beating by multiple assailants. They wrote he was working as an electrician to support his family at the time of his arrest.
"Mr. Crisler has accepted responsibility and is extremely remorseful for his actions," defense attorney Jaime Santana wrote in court papers. "He will stand before Your Honor as a man with no criminal record, a father, a brother, and a son. His unwavering commitment to accountability and redemption are clear. He only asks this Court for a just sentence."
Casanova has pleaded guilty to racketeering charges and is still awaiting sentencing.
Two weeks ago, Halpern sentenced another defendant, Dezon "Blakk" Washington, to 97 months in federal prison. Washington had pleaded guilty to conspiracy and crack cocaine distribution charges. Still, prosecutors alleged he and two other gang members participated in a "brazen gunpoint robbery of a rival Crips drug dealer at a motel in Peekskill, New York," where the victim was pistol-whipped.
Washington was also accused of participating in a jail beatdown with three other Gorilla Stone members last December, where the victim was assaulted for asking for his lunch tray in a "disrespectful manner," court records show.
