HONOLULU — A former Delaware death-row inmate who brought an 18-year-old Delaware man to Hawaii to get a fresh start says the teen has been falsely accused of a deadly shooting because he’s black. ADVERTISING HONOLULU — A former Delaware
HONOLULU — A former Delaware death-row inmate who brought an 18-year-old Delaware man to Hawaii to get a fresh start says the teen has been falsely accused of a deadly shooting because he’s black.
Isaiah McCoy said Jordan Smith is not the triggerman police say fired about 10 rounds from an assault rifle at a group of people standing outside a Waikiki club on Saturday.
“Purposely pinpointing black people, that’s what they’re doing,” McCoy told Honolulu news station Hawaii News Now.
The shooting killed 23-year-old Maleko Remlinger of Kaneohe and injured two other men. Smith is charged with second-degree murder, first-degree attempted murder and two counts of attempted second-degree murder.
Smith pleaded not guilty Wednesday, according to online court records. He was being held on $1 million bail.
McCoy was convicted in Delaware of a drug-related killing and sentenced to death in 2012. A judge in January cited errors in the trial and declared McCoy not guilty.
McCoy moved to Hawaii after his release and said he’s an activist for black men falsely accused of crimes. McCoy said he brought Smith to the islands earlier this month.
“He’s just a new face, so it’s easy for him to be a scapegoat,” said McCoy. “I will not allow what happened to me, to happen to him.”
