Revy
2nd January 2010, 06:26
http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/brooklyn/2010/01/01/2010-01-01_brooklyn_man_kurt_hogan_21_dies_after_being_sta bbed_in_groin_outside_new_yearsho.html#ixzz0bQxCVQ Nh
The New Year claimed its first murder victim just a few hours into 2010 when a Brooklyn (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Brooklyn+%28New+York+City%29) man was stabbed to death outside a party, police and witnesses said.
Kirk Holgate (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Kirk+Holgate), 21, was stabbed several times in the groin at 2:50 a.m. but managed to stagger to a friend's East New York (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/East+New+York) home before collapsing, a grieving pal said.
"He was at a party," said Isabel Rodriguez (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Isabel+Rodriguez), 34, as she fought back tears. "He came back and was stabbed. He was left to bleed to death in my crib. He just said, 'Wrap me up, Mommy, stop the bleeding.' He didn't say nothing else after that."
Holgate died a short time later at Brookdale University Hospital (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Brookdale+University+Hospital+and+Medical+Center), just hours after the end of a year in which the city's murder rate plunged to a record low.
Holgate, the married father of a 2-year-old son, recently lost his job but was hoping to turn his life around in the new year, his devastated mother said.
"He wanted to be a better father and a better husband," said mom Denise Ellis (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Denise+Ellis), 38, at the family's Queens home. "He was here Friday and now he's gone - it's a horrible way to begin 2010."
Holgate was at a New Year's bash at an East New York barbershop down the block from Rodriguez's Ashford St. apartment before he was stabbed. He collapsed in the snow outside Rodriguez's building, leaving dark bloodstains, before making his way to her apartment.
Investigators were not certain what sparked the fight, which spilled onto the street and also resulted in a 27-year-old man being stabbed in the back, police said. That man was listed in stable condition at Brookdale.
Holgate's wife tried to make sense of the killing Friday night. "I want to know why. They took my son's father away from him. He's only 2-years-old," Lissette Mendoza Holgate (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Lissette+Mendoza+Holgate), 19, told the Daily News.
Though the number of murders citywide fell from 523 in 2008 to 461 in 2009, the 75th Precinct, which encompasses East New York, bucked the trend. It suffered a 41.2% jump, from 17 murders in 2008 to 24 last year, according to statistics released by the NYPD (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/New+York+City+Police+Department).
NYPD officials insisted that crime in East New York - including a 31% drop in murders from eight years ago - would keep dropping in 2010.
"Crime in general in East New York in 2009 was the lowest in modern history," said Paul Browne (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Paul+Browne), the NYPD's top spokesman, who pledged that Operation Impact - which floods troubled neighborhoods with cops - would continue this year.
Three hours after Holgate's murder, a 31-year-old man shot in the face staggered into the 81st Precinct in Bushwick (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Bushwick), Brooklyn, and collapsed, police said. The victim, whose name was not released, died a short time later.
Two men were taken into custody hours later.
The New Year claimed its first murder victim just a few hours into 2010 when a Brooklyn (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Brooklyn+%28New+York+City%29) man was stabbed to death outside a party, police and witnesses said.
Kirk Holgate (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Kirk+Holgate), 21, was stabbed several times in the groin at 2:50 a.m. but managed to stagger to a friend's East New York (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/East+New+York) home before collapsing, a grieving pal said.
"He was at a party," said Isabel Rodriguez (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Isabel+Rodriguez), 34, as she fought back tears. "He came back and was stabbed. He was left to bleed to death in my crib. He just said, 'Wrap me up, Mommy, stop the bleeding.' He didn't say nothing else after that."
Holgate died a short time later at Brookdale University Hospital (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Brookdale+University+Hospital+and+Medical+Center), just hours after the end of a year in which the city's murder rate plunged to a record low.
Holgate, the married father of a 2-year-old son, recently lost his job but was hoping to turn his life around in the new year, his devastated mother said.
"He wanted to be a better father and a better husband," said mom Denise Ellis (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Denise+Ellis), 38, at the family's Queens home. "He was here Friday and now he's gone - it's a horrible way to begin 2010."
Holgate was at a New Year's bash at an East New York barbershop down the block from Rodriguez's Ashford St. apartment before he was stabbed. He collapsed in the snow outside Rodriguez's building, leaving dark bloodstains, before making his way to her apartment.
Investigators were not certain what sparked the fight, which spilled onto the street and also resulted in a 27-year-old man being stabbed in the back, police said. That man was listed in stable condition at Brookdale.
Holgate's wife tried to make sense of the killing Friday night. "I want to know why. They took my son's father away from him. He's only 2-years-old," Lissette Mendoza Holgate (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Lissette+Mendoza+Holgate), 19, told the Daily News.
Though the number of murders citywide fell from 523 in 2008 to 461 in 2009, the 75th Precinct, which encompasses East New York, bucked the trend. It suffered a 41.2% jump, from 17 murders in 2008 to 24 last year, according to statistics released by the NYPD (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/New+York+City+Police+Department).
NYPD officials insisted that crime in East New York - including a 31% drop in murders from eight years ago - would keep dropping in 2010.
"Crime in general in East New York in 2009 was the lowest in modern history," said Paul Browne (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Paul+Browne), the NYPD's top spokesman, who pledged that Operation Impact - which floods troubled neighborhoods with cops - would continue this year.
Three hours after Holgate's murder, a 31-year-old man shot in the face staggered into the 81st Precinct in Bushwick (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Bushwick), Brooklyn, and collapsed, police said. The victim, whose name was not released, died a short time later.
Two men were taken into custody hours later.