Tuesday, March 30, 2004 | 11:32 a.m.
Several of the jurors who convicted Alfonso "Slinkey" Blake of killing two young women wept Monday as they listened to emotional testimony from the victims' families.
One by one, parents and siblings of Sophear Choy, 19, and Priscilla Van Dine, 22, took the witness stand and cried as they told jurors how their lives have been changed since the shootings.
"This is about an individual who on March 5, 2003, turned my life and the life of my family upside down," Van Dine's father, Donald Van Dine, said. "Am I bitter? Yeah, I'm bitter."
Kim Choy, 23, Sophear's sister, who was also shot twice in the head by Blake but survived, said she is still reeling from the loss of her younger sister, who died in her arms.
"There's a lot I can't get back now," she said, crying. "I miss everything. I miss her presence. I just miss my sister.
"She was younger than me but I looked up to her."
The testimony came during the penalty phase of Blake's capital murder trial before District Judge Sally Loehrer. Testimony was expected to resume this morning, with Blake possibly taking the stand.
By this afternoon, jurors were to begin deciding whether Blake, 33, an aspiring R&B singer, should be sentenced to death for his crime.
During their opening argument on Monday, prosecutors reminded jurors of Blake's extensive criminal history, which dates back to 1988 and includes a rash of battery convictions as well as convictions for drug possession and soliciting prostitution.
"The future of this career criminal is in your hands," Chief Deputy District Attorney Christopher Lalli told jurors. "The state of Nevada will ask you to tell him enough is enough."
Jurors already had rejected Blake's plea of not guilty by reason of insanity. But defense attorney Pete Christiansen urged them to show mercy, despite his client's defense.
"If you're looking to hold someone accountable for the defense, look no further than me," he said.
Blake's relatives, who crowded the opposite side of the courtroom from where the victims' families sat, described the slayings as "out of character" for Blake. They described Blake as a caring man and a talented musician.
"He's not what people say that he is," Blake's brother, Anthony Flemming, said. "We all make mistakes. We all get upset. This was a big mistake."
Blake's sister, Arlene Oliver, said Blake was a caring and jovial person who has recently discovered religion.
"He's not a monster," she said. "I've shared the love of God with Alfonso, how God forgives. I'll continue to share that with him."
Prosecutors said Blake became angry when the victims, who all worked at local topless clubs, reneged on an agreement to rent out rooms in his house. Blake shot them in a desert area near Lone Grove Road and Decatur Boulevard.
Three other women, who also worked as strippers, already rented rooms in Blake's home and were giving their earnings to Blake.
Melissa Van Dine-Dahl, Van Dine's older sister, said her sister was a nurturing woman who was known for making decisions that benefited others.
"The night she made a decision for herself, when she decided she didn't want to move in with him (Blake), I was proud of her for making that decision because she knew it was wrong," Dahl said.
Van Dine lived with Dahl at her home in Las Vegas for several months and stayed home with Dahl's three young children and Van Dine's own 2-year-old daughter. But when Van Dine took a job dancing topless at a local club, Dahl suggested she find another place to live.
Dahl said she disagreed with her sister's lifestyle but she she still loved her.
"I'm haunted," Dahl said, bawling. "I'm scared she died hating me."
On one occasion, Dahl bought her sister a car, but later took it away from her because she felt Van Dine was partying too much.
One of the last times the siblings spoke, Dahl was urging Van Dine to make something more of her life by going to college, Dahl said.
"I'm not sue if the last time I hung up I said 'I love you,' " she said. "I hope she knows I was just trying to give her tough love."
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