A 22-year-old who shot seven people in one day as part of a West Philly gang feud pleads guilty

A 22-year-old man’s role in a gang feud that left at least 53 people shot in less than a year ended Thursday when he pleaded guilty to nearly a dozen crimes, including murder.

Jalen ”Skip” Mickens, dressed in a red jumpsuit, stared straight ahead as he pleaded guilty to 11 charges, including two counts of third-degree murder, related to his part in three shootings in one night in 2021 that left two young men dead, five injured, and a community in mourning.

Prosecutors say that on the evening of July 4, 2021, Mickens and three others — part of a street group called “02da4″ — drove through West Philadelphia on the hunt for members of a rival gang called “524.”

Assistant District Attorney Jeffrey Palmer said Anthony ”Pistol P” Lacey-Woodson was with Mickens that night. He has also been charged with multiple counts of murder, conspiracy, and related crimes. His case remains ongoing, Palmer said, and he’s indicated he’ll take the case to trial.

The feud originated, Palmer said, when Lacey-Woodson’s uncle, Frank “Tooley” Smith, was fatally shot in December 2020. The group blamed 524 for his death, and in the 11 months that followed, the rivalry resulted in dozens of shootings.

In total, 53 people were shot as part of the group’s back and forth, Palmer said, and 16 were killed. More than half of those shot, Palmer said, were bystanders and not members of the groups.

Among the innocent who died were Sircarr Johnson Jr., 23, and Salahaldin Mahmoud, 21 — both killed, Palmer said, when Mickens, Lacey-Woodson, and two others fired 103 shots into a barbeque Johnson was hosting at his store on 60th and Sansom Streets on July 4, 2021. A 16-year-old girl was also shot multiple times but survived, and another young woman was cut by glass and shrapnel.

The shooters, Palmer said, were aiming for a 524 member who was at the gathering, and fired indiscriminately into the crowd. Johnson died in his father’s arms. The intended target wasn’t struck. Johnson and Mahmoud, he said, had no affiliation with the gangs.

Their deaths shattered the lives of their loved ones and the greater West Philadelphia community.

“He took care of all of us,” Johnson’s aunt, Leah Ross, said of her nephew outside the courthouse.

Before Mickens and Lacey-Woodson shot up the barbeque, they targeted two houses nearby, Palmer said.

First, just after 8 p.m., they drove to the 1600 block of South 54th Street, and shot two young men multiple times. Two hours later, around 10:35 p.m. they shot a 16-year-old at 60th and Walton Streets, he said.

As Common Pleas Court Judge Scott O’Keefe read each charge aloud, and Mickens said “guilty” over and over, Johnson’s mother, Pamela Owensby, shook her head, but kept her eyes fixed on her son’s killer. Johnson’s grandmother, Juanita Johnson, dropped her chin to her chest and sobbed.

Owensby said Mickens’ admission of guilt was a small win, but she’s trying not to get her hopes up, as Lacey-Woodson’s case remains open. Mahmoud’s mother, Lennora Mahmoud, said she can’t stop thinking about how the two other shooters police say were with them that night haven’t been identified.

“They’re still out here,” she said.

Cachella Ford said her 16-year-old son who was injured on Walton Street is still processing the emotional trauma of that night. But he’s back in school, working, and trying to move his life forward, she said.

“Everyday I pray for our God to touch the minds of our youth,” she said.

Palmer, part of the DA’s Gun Violence Task Force to crack down on violent street groups, said the investigation that resulted in Mickens’ arrest spanned 18 months and relied heavily on ballistics evidence, text messages, and social media postings.

“There’s no time period ... where we will forget about these incidents, where we will stop investigating these incidents,” he said. “The good people of Philadelphia in these neighborhoods have lived too long under this. ... We won’t allow this to happen and we’ll make sure the people that are doing it are brought to justice.”

Mickens is set to be sentenced in January.

“Everybody’s losing, there’s no winning,” Ross, Johnson’s aunt, said. “He left two kids without a father ... but you’re sad because he’s a young man, too.”

“He had a whole life to live,” she said. “There’s so many layers to this.”