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Peekskill man sentenced to 15 years in prison for Ricky Brickhouse murder

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While questions remain about who fired the shots that killed Ricky Brickhouse in Peekskill last year, his relatives made it clear in Westchester County District Court on Wednesday that they ultimately hold 20-year-old Arnold “AJ” Fernandez responsible for the crime.

“I will not back down or go anywhere until my family and I get justice for my son Ricky, whose life was taken by you, AJ, a young punk who can't fight but wants to be tough as he drives around with a car full of thugs with loaded guns,” Yvonne Clark told Fernandez before he was sentenced to 15 years in prison for the murder on January 29, 2023.

Fernandez was originally charged with first-degree murder, but pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter in April and received a 15-year prison sentence.

The shooting stemmed from an argument between Brickhouse and Fernandez over a woman. Police heard about it after Brickhouse called 911. He first reported that Fernandez had a gun in a car, and then that the car had stopped next to him. As a dispatcher listened, Brickhouse yelled that he had been shot on John Street near Spring Street.

He was hit in the abdomen by one of three shots fired through the passenger window of the car and died a short time later in hospital.

The car drove off, but police were able to provide a description and license plate. Westchester police soon spotted it on Sprain Brook Parkway in Hawthorne, where it was traveling south. After a chase, it was stopped in Greenburgh. Fernandez and two other occupants of the car, Omar Williams and Errick Lowe, were arrested.

Later that day, Williams was heard at police headquarters urging Fernandez to stand up for the team.

The weapon was confiscated the next day

A .40-caliber Smith & Wesson used in the shooting was recovered the following day after a motorist spotted it further north along the highway. Authorities said it was Williams who put the gun in the car. Forensic testing found DNA from Williams and Fernandez on the gun.

Williams was never charged in connection with the murder, but pleaded guilty to second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and was sentenced to seven years in prison.

Lowe pleaded guilty to petty weapons possession and will avoid jail time or probation if he stays out of trouble for a year.

Assistant District Attorney Celia Curtis said the murder has caused great loss to Brickhouse's family.

“The defendant's crime was completely reckless, unnecessary and extremely tragic,” she said of Fernandez.

Brickhouse's sisters tell of painful loss

Brickhouse's mother, two sisters, two aunts and his godmother spoke on his behalf. Others wearing “Long Live the Madman” T-shirts joined them in the courtroom.

His sister Shanasia Brickhouse said her 11-year-old daughter and four-year-old son continue to suffer because they miss their “Uncle Nut.”

“I hope you rot in prison,” she told Fernandez. “I hope every night you lay your head, my brother comes and haunts you.”

Brickhouse's older sister, Sheonna Contreras, said the killing still shakes her. It was especially painful, she said, knowing that Fernandez was someone she had supported in school as a motivator and pushed to stay in school so he could graduate and do something positive with his life.

“I'm very disappointed in you,” she told him. “You should be ashamed of yourself.”

Aunt Idena Cole said she sometimes finds herself at Brickhouse's grave and wonders why the murder happened.

“I don't question God – only God knows why my nephew's life was taken,” she told Fernandez. “But you know what, Judgement Day is coming for you.”

Defense attorney Jeffrey Chartier said Fernandez regretted his actions and decisions that day, acknowledging they were “foolish and have caused harm to many families.”

Fernandez: “I wish I could turn back time”

Fernandez watched each of Brickhouse's relatives as they approached him. Afterwards, he apologized.

“I deeply regret being involved in this situation,” he said. “Every day of my life I wish I could turn back time … but unfortunately I do not have that ability, so I would like to sincerely apologize to his family members and loved ones.”

State Supreme Court Justice Larry Schwartz called Fernandez's actions against the unarmed Brickhouse “evil, heartless and brutal.”

“You took a man's life for no reason and inflicted unbearable suffering on Ricky Brickhouse's family,” the judge said.

But Fernandez's mother also described her son as a victim outside the courtroom. She said Brickhouse was a “monster” who had repeatedly threatened her son.

“He was no angel,” Nicole Rodriguez said of Brickhouse. “My son was threatened, he was treated with hostility.”

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