Sanks brothers appear in court for 2016 murder

Tensions ran high in a Monterey County courtroom, Monday. Brothers, Jerry and Lenny Sanks , sat in front of a judge as law enforcement officers recounted what they know about the murder of Kareem Jamal King.

Jerry and Lenny Sanks are charged with King’s murder. The 23-year-old was shot in Salinas’ Chinatown in 2016. He later died from his injuries.

King’s mother, Shannon Quarles , spoke with KION when the Sanks brothers were first arrested. She said the pain is still there. ” He gunned my son down six times. Why did he have to shoot my son six times? My son was doing nothing standing there, ” said Quarles .

In September 2018, Jerry Sanks turned himself in for the murder after a warrant was put out for his arrest. His brother, Lenny Sanks , joined him behind bars in February 2019 for the same crime. In court, they sat side by side and often chatted among themselves.

Jerry’s attorney, William Pernik, defends the once child football coach’s innocence. ” I don’t know a lot of people, and I’ve only seen it happen twice in my career and in my lifetime, that a man surrenders himself on a first degree murder warrant. I think that says everything, ” said Pernik.

Jerry pleaded his own innocence in a letter he posted to Facebook. The note asked members of his former football team and their families to keep him in their prayers.

Quarles told KION she stands firm in her belief that Jerry is guilty. ” He knows what he did to my son. That’s all that matters to me. I don’t care about him being a coach. I don’t care about how he turned his life around. None of that. What matters to me is getting justice for my son, ” said Quarles .

The trial will continue Tuesday, June 25.