BOSTON (WHDH) - A Dorchester man charged with a shooting near the J’Ouvert Caribbean festival that injured eight people in Boston in 2023 has been found guilty on several firearm related charges after two trials, Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden announced Wednesday.
On April 22, a Suffolk Country grand jury convicted Gerald Vick, 33, of carrying a firearm without a license (2nd offense), carrying a loaded firearm without a license, and possession of a large capacity feeding device.
On May 6, a second jury convicted Vick on one count of possession of a machine gun.
On Saturday, August 26, 2023, Boston police patrolling the festival observed two groups of men congregating and pointing at each other on opposite sides of Talbot Avenue. Vick was identified from surveillance video as one of the men standing near the Boys and Girls Club parking lot. Hayden said Vick was seen walking to the front of the group in what appeared to be a show of force to the second group.
When officers approached the groups, Hayden said shots rang out and hundreds of people in the crowd ran for cover. Eight people were shot, none fatally.
Hayden said a total of 20 shell casings and one bullet fragment were located on scene.
Vick was arrested on scene and police recovered a firearm. Five of the casings recovered on scene were found to be fired from that firearm.
Two others have also been charged in connection with the shooting.
Dwayne Francis, 31, of Dorchester is charged with carrying a firearm without a license, illegal possession of ammunition, carrying a loaded firearm, and possession of a large capacity feeding device. Francis is scheduled for trial on June 1.
Sebastian Monteiro, 22, of Boston, pleaded guilty in October 2024 to assault with a dangerous weapon, carrying a firearm without a license, and carrying a loaded firearm without a license. Monteiro was sentenced to four years in state prison with one year of probation to follow.
In a statement, Hayden said, “This was a brazen, unconscionable act of violence made all the worse by being committed in the middle of one of our city’s proudest cultural events, attended by thousands. I’m grateful for the time and care these jurors took in reviewing all the evidence and testimony before reaching their decision to hold Gerald Vick accountable for his reckless actions.”
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