Jailed Tahoe owner casts long shadow

Hicks identified as longtime member of metro-area Crips

Charlie Brennan, Rocky Mountain News

Published January 4, 2007 at midnight

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People who know Brian Kenneth Hicks might not be hard to find. But those willing to talk about him could be more difficult to come by.

That's according to one of Denver's top non-police authorities on gang activity, the Rev. Leon Kelly, executive director of Denver's Open Door Youth Gang Alternatives.

"He's a Crip," said Kelly, who has been working to combat metro-area gang violence for more than 20 years. "I know him from past experiences. In 21 years, you run into a lot of people. Brian and his crew, I've known him over the years."

But Kelly won't say a lot about Hicks.

"There's a lot of people spooked right now, a lot of people spooked," Kelly said. "To speak on what I've seen and what I know . . . I've got to be concerned about my safety. And my family's safety."

Hicks, who turned 28 three weeks ago, was sitting in the Denver County Jail on New Year's morning when Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams was killed in a hail of gunfire.

Hicks has been in jail on $550,000 bail since shortly after his arrest Nov. 9 for allegedly possessing four kilos of cocaine for distribution. He also faces a charge of attempted murder in a June 2005 case.

But Denver police on Wednesday announced they were looking for a "vehicle of interest" in Williams' slaying, a 1998 white Chevrolet Tahoe that belongs to Hicks.

A recent court filing arguing for lower bail in Hicks' drug case, filed by attorney Walter Gerash, states that Hicks owns a clothing store at 2019 E. Colfax Ave. and was the registered agent for Boss Money Records, which state records show was formed on Aug. 22, 2004, but is in delinquent status.

Hicks is the father of a 6-year-old boy who lives with his wife, Kimaya James.

When asked Wednesday about the Tahoe registered to Hicks, James said she didn't know who had been driving it or where it was.

Hicks is awaiting trial in the attempted murder of Kallonniann Louisa Clark-James, who was shot at - but not hit - at West Ninth Avenue and Acoma Street early on June 12, 2005, after leaving Club Safari, the same nightspot Williams visited before he was killed.

Clark-James was killed at her Cherry Creek-area home Dec. 6, a week before she was to testify against Hicks in the attempted-murder trial. Her slaying remains unsolved.Hicks was sentenced in 1997 to three years in prison for menacing and carrying a concealed firearm.

Tragic trail

Key events in the cases of Brian Hicks, Kallonniann Louisa Clark-James and Darrent Williams.

• May 3, 2003: Hicks, then 24, allegedly approaches Clark-James on Auraria Parkway, hits her, puts a gun to her head and threatens to kill her. He is charged with felony menacing and third-degree assault. Those charges are later dropped.

• June 12, 2005: Clark-James leaves Club Safari at The Shelter, 10th Avenue and Broadway - the same nightspot where Williams' group would be on New Year's Eve - at about 2:30 a.m. At West Ninth Avenue and Acoma Street someone fires a gun at her. She is not hit. Hicks is charged with several felonies, including attempted murder.

• Nov. 9, 2006: Hicks, free on bail in the attempted-murder case, is arrested in the 4300 block of Josephine Street and charged with possession of four kilos of cocaine with intent to distribute. He's jailed on $550,000 bail.

• Dec. 6: Clark-James, a key witness against Hicks in connection with the June 2005 shooting, is shot and killed five days before Hicks is scheduled for trial.

• Dec. 11: Hicks' trial in the 2005 case is postponed. He remains in jail on more than $1 million bail.

• Monday: Darrent Williams is shot and killed about 2:20 a.m. in a rented limousine at West 11th Avenue and Speer Boulevard, after leaving a party at The Shelter.

• Wednesday: Police issue an all-points bulletin for a 1998 White Chevy Tahoe in connection with Williams' slaying. The SUV is registered to Hicks, who is still in jail.

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