Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that RALPH BERRY was sentenced today to life in prison for the June 2000 fatal shooting of innocent bystander Caprice Jones in the Bronx, New York. Jones was left paralyzed from the shooting and died from his injuries 10 years later, in November 2010. BERRY was convicted following a jury trial on September 30, 2021, before then-U.S. District Judge Alison J. Nathan. Judge Nathan, now a U.S. Circuit Judge sitting by designation in Manhattan federal court, imposed today’s sentence.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Ralph Berry callously ordered the shooting of a rival drug dealer that resulted in the senseless murder of Caprice Jones. Jones was simply enjoying a Father’s Day barbecue when his life was changed forever. As a result of Berry’s actions, Jones was left paralyzed and ultimately died from his injuries 10 years later. Berry has now been sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison.”
According to the Indictmentand evidence presented at trial:
In the summer of 2000, BERRY was the head of a violent drug crew that operated in the McKinley Housing Development in the Bronx. On June 21, 2000, BERRY ordered one of his subordinates to shoot a rival drug dealer with whom BERRY had been feuding over drug territory. That subordinate followed BERRY’s order and fired multiple shots into a Father’s Day barbecue being held on the McKinley Houses basketball courts. Caprice Jones, an innocent bystander who was not involved in the drug dispute, was struck in the spine by one of the bullets. The gunshot injury Jones sustained that day left him paralyzed from the waist down and ultimately caused his death ten years later, in November 2010, at the age of 42.
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In addition to the prison term, BERRY, 55, of the Bronx, New York, was sentenced to five years’ supervised release and a $200 mandatory special assessment.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding work of the New York City Police Department and the Special Agents of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.
The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Violent and Organized Crime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dominic A. Gentile, Adam S. Hobson, and Jacob R. Fiddelman are in charge of the prosecution.