Grieving father frustrated by legal process in Tonawanda slaying

The months that adopted have added wrenching frustration to Hamzah’s grief.

Hamzah mentioned authorities have not correctly responded to Harith M. Alkhalaf’s slaying.

He mentioned he would not know why it took 3½ months to cost anybody. He believes the suspect must be charged with homicide, not manslaughter, within the 19-year-old’s dying, and should not be eligible for bail.

And he thinks another person, Alkhalaf’s on-and-off girlfriend, should reply for her position in what occurred.

“I simply want justice for my son. That is all I want,” Hamzah mentioned in an interview. “That is all I want.”

The Erie County District Lawyer’s Workplace defended its dealing with of the case. A spokeswoman mentioned the manslaughter cost was introduced after a grand jury reviewed the case.

She additionally famous prosecutors can, and did, request bail, however the last resolution is as much as a decide.

And the lawyer for Michael Atkinson, the person charged within the killing, mentioned Alkhalaf clearly was the aggressor within the encounter outdoors his consumer’s dwelling that left Atkinson badly wounded.

“It is a traditional case of self-defense,” lawyer Matthew Albert mentioned.

Usually talking, homicide is deliberately, unjustifiably killing another person, whereas manslaughter is unintentionally taking a life. The penalties for a homicide conviction are extra extreme than these for manslaughter.

Individuals who knew Alkhalaf describe him as pleasant and hardworking. He was about 7 years previous when he got here right here from Iraq along with his household.

“Humorous man. Outgoing. All the time enjoyable to be round. Good – very good,” mentioned Rohin Ramin, who met Alkhalaf in sixth grade and bonded with him to the purpose he refers to Alkhalaf as “cousin” or “brother.”

Alkhalaf went to Candy Dwelling Excessive Faculty, the place he wrestled, and had labored variously in fast-food service, building and on the cellphone service retailer that Hamzah manages.

Alkhalaf was near his father, with whom he lived in Riverside.

Hamzah and Ramin mentioned Alkhalaf’s relationship along with his girlfriend was a turbulent one. The girl, who The Buffalo Information isn’t naming, accused Alkhalaf of giving her a black eye as soon as, Hamzah mentioned, although his son denied hitting her and Hamzah by no means noticed proof of abuse.

Ramin mentioned Alkhalaf would commonly attempt to break up together with her, solely to have her inundate Alkhalaf with textual content messages and calls till he took her again.

The girl and her lawyer didn’t reply to messages in search of remark.

In keeping with Albert, nonetheless, Alkhalaf was the one unwilling to let go.

Atkinson and the lady weren’t courting, Albert mentioned, however the two talked commonly, and Alkhalaf grew to become outraged when he realized of this.

“His son discovered my consumer’s quantity in (the lady)’s telephone,” Albert mentioned, responding to Hamzah’s statements. “His son began sending him textual content messages, that means my consumer, saying he was going to rape his complete household and kill all people in his household. After which, on the night time of, his son came to visit to my consumer’s home, making my consumer suppose that he was coming to meet that promise.”

Hamzah, nonetheless, mentioned the boys had threatened one another.

The night time of April 19, Ramin mentioned, he and his pal spent a few hours sitting in Ramin’s automotive, speaking and laughing and on-line movies on Alkhalaf’s telephone.

“All the pieces was good,” mentioned Ramin, who stays heartbroken about what got here subsequent.

Hamzah mentioned he final talked to his son round 11 p.m. or midnight.

City of Tonawanda police launched a bare-bones account of what occurred subsequent.

They initially reported one man was killed and a second man was injured simply earlier than 1:20 a.m. following an “altercation” on James Avenue, at River Highway, a pocket of a half-dozen houses surrounded by industrial and industrial properties.

Hamzah received up and went to work on April 20 with out seeing Alkhalaf.

“I awoke at 7. I textual content him, ‘The place are you, Harith?’ No reply. I known as him. No reply,” he mentioned.

He mentioned police known as that morning and mentioned they wanted to fulfill Hamzah in particular person.

Two officers arrived at Hamzah’s retailer and mentioned his son had been discovered lifeless in his automotive, the sufferer of a murder.

The next account is predicated on what a detective later shared with Hamzah. The investigator relayed what was seen in surveillance footage, however didn’t present Hamzah the movies.

Hamzah mentioned police advised him they interviewed Atkinson at Kenmore Mercy Hospital. Atkinson advised investigators, Hamzah mentioned, that he was in a automotive with a feminine pal – Alkhalaf’s ex – when Alkhalaf pulled up in his automobile, jumped out, walked over to confront him and stabbed him.

That is why, Atkinson advised police, he was compelled to shoot Alkhalaf. The girl offered the identical model of occasions to investigators, Hamzah mentioned.

Nevertheless, Hamzah mentioned, police advised him surveillance video confirmed Alkhalaf pulling up alongside his ex and speaking to her till Atkinson approached from behind and shot Alkhalaf 3 times within the again.

Alkhalaf was skinny, however toughened from years of wrestling, his father mentioned. His son was capable of get out of his automotive, transfer towards Atkinson and stab him with a knife, Hamzah mentioned. 

Alkhalaf then fell to the bottom, the place Atkinson kicked him and walked away, Hamzah mentioned, earlier than returning to stab Alkhalaf twice within the chest.

The ex-girlfriend had pushed away, however returned to the scene, the place she picked up Atkinson to take him to the hospital, Hamzah mentioned.

Alkhalaf, then gravely wounded, pulled himself into his automotive and known as 911, however he could not converse and died earlier than assist arrived, his father mentioned.

Nobody was charged within the case for months. Then, in late July, CrimeStoppers introduced a $2,500 reward for info resulting in Atkinson’s arrest.

He was indicted on prices of manslaughter and legal possession of a weapon, the District Attorney’s Office said on Aug. 2. He was briefly held on $100,000 bail earlier than being launched on bond.

Hamzah, who commonly known as prosecutors for updates, mentioned he is intensely annoyed with the authorized course of. He mentioned Atkinson is responsible of homicide, not manslaughter, as a result of he shot and stabbed Alkhalaf.

Kait Munro, a spokeswoman for the DA’s Workplace, mentioned prosecutors do not consider a homicide cost towards Atkinson could possibly be confirmed past an inexpensive doubt.

“Additionally,” she mentioned in an e mail, “the proof didn’t present that another particular person was culpable within the crime.”

Atkinson’s lawyer declined to enter particulars of the encounter past repeating it was Alkhalaf who confronted Atkinson.

“My consumer had a fully cheap perception that each his life and his household’s lives had been in peril. And a bloody brutal altercation ensued, wherein one particular person nearly died and one other particular person died,” mentioned Albert, including Atkinson suffered a punctured lung.

Albert mentioned he is ready for proof prosecutors are required to supply underneath discovery guidelines. A listening to on one other authorized query is ready for Friday in Erie County Courtroom.

For Hamzah and Alkhalaf’s mates, the await trial provides to their ache.

Hamzah mentioned he visits Alkhalaf’s grave in Ridge Garden Cemetery in Cheektowaga daily. And he was within the strategy of leaving his dwelling when he spoke to The Information.

“I am shifting from the home,” Hamzah mentioned. “All the pieces jogs my memory of him.”