Posted on April 16, 2007

Unruly Crowd Gathers At Standoff

Jeff Billington, Tulsa World, April 15, 2007

Police surrounded a north Tulsa apartment Saturday night attempting to take a murder suspect into custody.

Units from across the city were called in to help disperse a large crowd that had gathered, with some in the crowd reportedly throwing rocks and firing a weapon toward police and others near where the suspect had holed up.

The suspect, Rico Starks, 18, barricaded himself inside an apartment at the Morning Star Apartments, 2201 N. Hartford Ave., at about 7 p.m., refusing to comply with police demands that he surrender.

Officer Scott Walton couldn’t confirm reports about rocks being thrown and shots being fired from the crowd, but KOTV, channel 6, cameraman Dominic Armstrong, who was in the middle of the melee when it began, said he was standing next to a vehicle that was hit by shots fired from the crowd. He also said several people in the crowd grabbed a reporter from another television station by her hair and threw her to the ground.

{snip}

Starks was charged in early February with second-degree murder in the slaying of Mark Jordan, 18.

In January, a charge of shooting with intent to kill was filed against Starks.

Subject Number Percent

WHITE

Total population (all races)

1,173

100.0

White alone or in combination1

29

2.5

White alone

17

1.4

White in combination1

12

1.0

Not White alone or in combination1

1,144

97.5

BLACK OR AFRICAN AMERICAN

Total population (all races)

1,173

100.0

Black or African American alone or in combination1

1,128

96.2

Black or African American alone

1,106

94.3

Black or African American in combination1

22

1.9

Not Black or African American alone or in combination1

45

3.8

AMERICAN INDIAN AND ALASKA NATIVE

Total population (all races)

1,173

100.0

American Indian and Alaska Native alone or in combination1

32

2.7

American Indian and Alaska Native alone

15

1.3

American Indian and Alaska Native in combination1

17

1.4

Not American Indian and Alaska Native alone or in combination1

1,141

97.3

ASIAN

Total population (all races)

1,173

100.0

Asian alone or in combination1

3

0.3

Asian alone

2

0.2

Asian in combination1

1

0.1

Not Asian alone or in combination1

1,170

99.7

NATIVE HAWAIIAN AND OTHER PACIFIC ISLANDER

Total population (all races)

1,173

100.0

Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone or in combination1

0

0.0

Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone

0

0.0

Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander in combination1

0

0.0

Not Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone or in combination1

1,173

100.0

SOME OTHER RACE

Total population (all races)

1,173

100.0

Some other race alone or in combination1

9

0.8

Some other race alone

8

0.7

Some other race in combination1

1

0.1

Not Some other race alone or in combination1

1,164

99.2

(X) Not applicable.

1 In combination with one or more of the other races listed. The six numbers for race “alone or in combination” may add to more than the total population and the six percentages for race “alone or in combination” may add to more than 100 percent because individuals may report more than one race.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 Summary File 1, Matrices P7 and P9.