Newark Buries Playground Shooting Victims

The mayor of New Jersey's largest city shouted and pounded a podium — yelling, "Enough is enough!" near a coffin containing the body of a young man who was one of three killed execution-style last weekend.

Mayor Cory A. Booker was interrupted by applause as he passionately urged the people of Newark to make a difference and help fight a murder rate that has spiked in recent years.

Quoting the words of the father of Dashon Harvey, 20, Booker said, "We need to raise our children."

Harvey's funeral in a Baptist church was part of a morning of funerals. Services were scheduled later for Terrance Aeriel, 18, and Iofemi Hightower, 20.

The friends were shot during an apparent robbery attempt that authorities have called one of the most disturbing killings in Newark in recent memory.

Terrance Aeriel's sister, Natasha Aeriel, was shot in the head but survived and has helped investigators identify a suspect in the case.

The three victims were ordered to kneel in front of a wall before each was shot in the back of the head, authorities have said.

On Thursday, Booker announced the arrest of 28-year-old Jose Carranza and a 15-year-old male who was not identified because of his age. Another 15-year male was arrested Friday night, and authorities continue to seek other suspects in the murders.

Scores of students from Delaware State University, where Harvey and the Aeriel siblings were students, were expected to attend the funerals, as were Gov. Jon S. Corzine and Attorney General Anne Milgram.

"As a human being, not just your governor, I am here with a broken heart, a sad heart, a heavy heart," Corzine said at Harvey's funeral. "These children deserved better."

All four shooting victims were Newark residents. Hightower, who was in the process of enrolling at Delaware State for the fall semester, and the Aeriels attended West Side High School, while Harvey graduated from University High.

Funeral services for Harvey were held at Newark's Metropolitan Baptist Church. Terrance Aeriel's funeral was scheduled for New Hope Baptist Church in Newark and Hightower's was to be held at Grace Temple Baptist Church in Newark.