In the early morning hours of September 11, 2011, the life of 18-year-old Tayshana Dejenea 'Chicken' Murphy, a nationally ranked high school basketball star, was tragically cut short. The young female was fatally shot in a hallway of the Grant Houses in Harlem, New York, the public housing complex where she lived. Murphy, a senior at Murry Bergtraum High School for Business Careers, was considered one of the top point guards in the country and was being recruited by several colleges with dreams
of one day playing in the WNBA.
The shooting was the culmination of a violent dispute between rival groups from the Grant Houses and the nearby Manhattanville Houses. In the hours leading up to her death, Murphy was outside her building with friends when she was chased inside. She ran for her life, but was cornered on the fourth floor and shot three times, in her chest, hip, and arm. Witnesses reported hearing her plead for her life just before the fatal shots were fired.
The investigation quickly identified two main suspects: Tyshawn Brockington, 21, and Robert Cartagena, 20. Surveillance video showed both men at the scene with guns in their waistbands. A third man, 24-year-old Terique Collins, was also arrested and accused of supplying the murder weapon. The brazen nature of the crime and the loss of such a promising young life sent shockwaves through the community.
Following an intense manhunt, Brockington and Cartagena were apprehended on September 21, 2011, by U.S. Marshals in Columbia, South Carolina, where they were found hiding in a closet. They were extradited back to New York to face charges. The subsequent legal proceedings brought some measure of justice for Tayshana's family. Tyshawn Brockington was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. Robert Cartagena was also found guilty of murder, burglary, and criminal possession of a weapon, receiving the same sentence of 25 years to life. Terique Collins was later acquitted of the weapons possession charges against him. The convictions brought a close to the legal chapter of a senseless act of violence that ended a life full of potential.
