The Latest In Crackdown On Violence In Public Housing: Four Nashville Men Face Lengthy Prison Terms

Four Nashville men have been sentenced to more than 80 years in prison for a series of robberies and shootings in the Napier neighborhood south of downtown.

It’s the latest development in a years-long federal investigation into violent crime. The case is part of an ongoing effort to curb violence in the city’s public housing developments.

The announcement from federal prosecutors reads like a synopsis from an episode of “The Wire.” Young men robbing drug dealers with machine guns. Bystanders getting caught in the crossfire. Fights during dice games. Retaliatory shootings.

Violent crime sprees don’t always end with guilty pleas and lengthy prison sentences, like they do in the TV shows. But in this case, four young men will spend years – in some cases, decades – behind bars on a slew of federal charges.

Rodrecus Smith faces 34 years in federal prison for multiple charges related to the October 2013 murder of Mario McKnight, after McKnight tried to flee the scene when Smith robbed a drug dealer and threatened to shoot anyone who got in the way.

That incident set off a streak of revenge shootings.

Darryl Starks — a friend of McKnight — has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for his role in four shootings in the Napier area that targeted two men he suspected had played a role in his friend’s death.

Those two men, Ernest Eddie and Martez Parham, have also pleaded guilty to multiple federal charges. Eddie has been sentenced to 61 months in prison for possessing a gun as a felon, and Parham faces 27 years behind bars for multiple crimes, including robbery and conspiracy.

Prosecutors says they’ve made it a priority in recent years to reduce violent crime in public housing. The U.S. attorney’s office says its investigation has already resulted in the conviction of more than 50 people since 2017.

The Metro Nashville Police Department has also taken a more proactive approach to law enforcement in public housing developments after a wave of violent crime in the James Cayce homes in East Nashville. Reported crime has decreased substantially since the department launched a community-oriented foot patrol unit in the area in 2017.

Samantha Max is a Report for America corps member.