More News

Ten-year-old Darryl Robinson III kept a stiff upper lip and a brave look on his face Tuesday evening as he talked about his father, until he spoke to family and friends — tears filled his eyes.

"He was a good man, a stand-up person. He put his family first," he said.

It had been two months to the day since his father, Darryl Robinson II, 28, of District Heights, was shot to death Jan. 31, a block from the Tradewinds nightclub in Temple Hills. Nearly 50 family and friends gathered during a vigil across the street from the on Allentown Way parking lot where Robinson's body had been found.

Darryl Robinson's sons, wife and mother were among those who stood next to a small table covered by white votive candles and photographs to not only honor his life but also to implore the community and police to help reduce violence, reflecting on a string of violence related to Prince George's nightclubs in the last two years.

Tuesday afternoon, Prince George's police released images of four individuals shown in a surveillance video inside of Tradewinds who may be connected to Robinson's death. Maj. Andy Ellis, the police department's chief spokesman, said Wednesday that since releasing the footage police have already received leads.

Throughout the vigil, Darryl's widow, Tameka Lee Robinson, 33, of District Heights, quietly wept for her husband, her hands shaking. Darryl's two other children, Marquise Lee, 13, and Jeremiah Turner, 9, also attended.

"If you're fed up you need to excuse yourself — think of your family and your children, think of the consequences, not just you but the other family when you're making rash decisions," Tameka Robinson said.

"I know someone saw someone. Come forward," she said through her sobs.

The vigil was organized by Reaching Out to Others Together, or ROOT, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit organization that intervenes for homicide victims and their families to mobilize communities to take a hands-on approach to reducing senseless violence, like homicides.

"We do a good job of reacting but not prevention. [The community and police] need to do more to prevent," said Kenny Barnes, the organization's founder. "The vigil doesn't help stop anything; it's just a step in the grieving process."

Police Chief Robert Hylton was expected to attend the vigil but was unable to attend.

"[Police Chief] Hylton is concerned about the process by which licenses are issued to clubs, and he wants to ensure that the police department has some type of sign-off authority before new licenses are issues," Ellis said Wednesday.

A man who answered the phone Wednesday afternoon at Tradewinds said the business had no comment.

This isn't the first time the Robinson family has lost a family member to gun violence.

Jerna Robinson, 24, of Oxon Hill was killed in March 2002, shot by an intruder in her apartment. The case hasn't been solved.

"I just want some peace," said Darryl's mother, Renee Ingram, 46, who also lives in northeast Washington. "This affects everybody in the community."

Robinson's death was among several in recent years near county entertainment hotspots.

In March 2007, nine nightclubs were shut down after 11 people were killed in only 11 days. Former Police Chief Melvin High was granted the authority to shut down any venues he saw as an "imminent danger."

On Jan. 17, Bernard Irvin of the 4200 block of Gault Place in Washington, D.C., died after being stabbed inside the Legend Nightclub in Temple Hills.

On March 1 at The Sideline Bar and Grill, the Largo sports bar owned by former Redskins linebacker LaVar Arrington, a Bowie man died and six others were injured after a man fired several shots into a crowd outside the venue.

Arthur Clark Jr., senior pastor at Agape Family Life Ministries in Cheltenham, told mourners that senseless murders must stop.

"Don't let this death just be another death, another life wasted," he said. "[Let's] get these jokers off the street."

E-mail Liz Skalski at eskalski@gazette.net.