Citing 'collective malevolence' court upholds Raleigh gang leaders' life sentences

Evidence at trial showed Devine was the leader of the Gangsta Killer Bloods (GKB) and created the Black Mob Gangstas (BMG) which later became a part of the Donald Gee Family (DGF) organization.

Authorities said the BMG and DGF sets are "Bloods" gang members who "committed various crimes in the city of Raleigh, and especially in the area of Haywood Street."

Mangun was another high-ranking member of BMG and DGF, authorities said.

Authorities said in order to maintain their position in the gang and to be promoted within leadership, members had to commit acts of violence within the gang and against non gang members. Those acts of violence included murder, attempted murder and assaults.

"These gang leaders used gun violence, intimidation and murder to terrorize parts of Raleigh for nearly two decades," said U.S. attorney Michael Easley.

Devine directed members of the gang to shoot 16-year-old Adarius Fowler, authorities said. Fowler died from his injuries in the shooting.

Authorities said Devine also ordered members to shoot a person who provided information to law enforcement about Fowler's murder, and while that person was recovering in the hospital, Devine ordered that the person be killed.

In addition, Devine watched over a "beat-in gang initiation" of a member and personally assaulted another gang member when his loyalty was questioned.

Mangum, along with other members, conspired to shoot 18-year-old Rodriquez Burrell because he refused to pay money to the gang. Burrell was shot multiple times in front of his father, authorities said, and later died from his injuries.

Both men also reportedly sold drugs for the gang.

BMG/DGF is considered a criminal enterprise, authorities said, because its members worked to preserve and protect their power and territory through violent crimes and intimidation and were engaged in interstate and foreign commerce.

The gang would hold meetings to pass along information, recruit members, issue punishment and collect dues. Authorities said part of the money was saved and used for a "community rent box" while another part was sent up to gang leadership in New York and Virginia. Members who did not pay the dues risked being robbed, assaulted or murdered.

In an opinion released on Thursday, a three-judge panel from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously upheld the four consecutive life terms followed by 240 months of imprisonment and five years of supervised release for Devine and the three consecutive life sentences plus 240 months in prison for Mangum.

In their ruling, the court said the men's "collective malevolence . . . led to a neighborhood where so many deserved so much better and where respect for the old and opportunities for the young existed no longer.”