Leon Wiley laughed as an Alameda County Superior Court Judge today ordered the 30-year old to spend the rest of his life in prison.The former member of the notorious "Nut Case Gang" chuckled some more when family members of one of the three people he either killed or ordered to be killed talked about their loved ones.
And, as Wiley was led out of the courtroom after a stern talking-to by Judge Joseph Hurley, he made sure to look both the judge and then family members in the eyes as he shouted his allegiance to the gang that terrorized Oakland in 2003."I don't give a f---," Wiley shouted as he was surrounded by court bailiffs. "I'm not scared of none of that s---. I don't care, I got no where to go. I'm Gotti, I'm Tweezy. Nut Cases."Wiley was one of eight members of the gang who were arrested in early 2003 after a six-week crime spree in Oakland that included five killings of strangers and a host of robberies.Oakland law enforcement officials considered the group, which members called the Nut Case Gang, "one of the most notorious little killing groups the city has ever seen."Originally, the Alameda County district attorney's office sought the death penalty against Wiley and other Nut Case members; however, the office changed its mind after a jury refused to give the first Nut Case member the death penaltyNevertheless, at least three of the gang members have been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the numerous crimes they committed in 2003. Others were sentenced to lesser terms after they took plea deals or were found not to have committed the most serious felonies.Wiley, who led the group for a time, was accused of some of the most heinous acts of the group. He was found guilty in September on seven felony counts including three counts of first degree murder, one count of attempted murder and several other felonies.
Most of the killings were committed against complete strangers.A jury found that Wiley killed Tracy Easterling, 21 and directed other members to kill Keith Maki Harris, 14 and Jerry Duckworth, 24. "He is to be incarcerated until he dies," Hurley said as he sentenced Wiley. "It is clear he is someone who treated firearms like people treat forks and knives."Tiffany Evans, Easterling's cousin, told the court that her cousin's death left a void in the family that could never be filled.
"My family suffers every day," she said as Wiley chuckled. "When we want to see her, we need to go to a grave."Easterling's aunt, Kathleen Miller, said she is horrified everyday by the last image of her niece."The last time I saw Tracy, is seeing her lying there in the hospital on life support," Miller said.Michael Nieto, a deputy district attorney who tried the case, said Wiley deserves to spend the rest of his life in prison and chalked up the gang member's courtroom outbursts to someone who is afraid of prison."Behind all that bragging, I believe Mr. Wiley is very scared to go to prison," Nieto said. "I've heard jail calls in which he is crying about going to prison."Nieto said he was relieved Wiley received the maximum sentence allowed under law and hopes the case proves to city residents that if they cooperate with police groups like the Nut Cases will end up in prison.
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