Slain girl’s family hopes arrests justified

Dan Kulin

Monday, Jan. 12, 2004 | 11:07 a.m.

Friends and family gathered for what would have been Tanisha Turner's 14th birthday last weekend at the Turner's single-story yellow house on Hassell Street in North Las Vegas.

Turner was killed almost two months ago while walking home, and the birthday party came with mixed emotions after the police department's announcement that officers had arrested two men in connection with the killing.

Robert Earl Hayes, 21, and Todd Dominique Johnson, 18, were charged Friday with murder, conspiracy to commit murder and shooting into an occupied dwelling, North Las Vegas police spokesman Officer Justin Roberts said.

Tanisha's mother, Ternia Turner, said she was surprised to hear that one of those charged with her daughter's Nov. 20 death is someone who lives just down the street.

But at the same time she was glad police appear to be making headway in the case, which police describe as a gang- or drug-related shootout that took the life of a 13-year-old innocent bystander.

"It relieves some of the pain, but it doesn't really help because she's still gone," Turner said Sunday. "I'm relieved they say the person who did it is in jail, but make sure that it's correct."

Other residents, who declined to give their names, agreed and said they wanted the police to be sure they had the right people.

Some people in the Turner's neighborhood, near the intersection of Lake Mead Boulevard and Comstock Drive, said Hayes lives near the area.

Johnson lives on Hassell, some neighbors and Turner said.

Roberts did not know where Hayes and Johnson resided. Both were still in police custody Sunday, being held on no bond, Roberts said.

Turner said she was shocked when she heard about Johnson's arrest, because he always seemed like a "nice kid."

Others said they were glad for the arrests.

Pauline Dorsey, 58, who has lived in her house on Hassell for 22 years, said the problem with her neighborhood is that not enough people contact the police when they witness a crime.

"I'm glad they caught the guys. I would have done it myself if I'd know who it was," Dorsey said, adding that many in the neighborhood wouldn't out of fear of retribution.

Dorsey said she thinks the large reward offered for information in this case led to the arrests.

Area business owners and members of Metro Police's Bolden Area Command/Police Advisory Committee offered a $20,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Tanisha's killer or killers.

Roberts said the details of the investigation are confidential for now, and so he could not say whether the arrests were the result of a reward-worthy tip.

Louis Conner, owner of the nearby Seven Seas Restaurant and Lounge and a member of the committee, said members had not heard whether they will have to pay out the reward money.

But Conner guessed the reward offer did help with the investigation, because it was enough to pay for a witness to move away if necessary.

"That money was so that people could be protected until a trial," Conner said.