Delayed Justice

Douglas Ryan Pollok, Jr.

Last Friday jurors found 27-year-old Juan Enrique Reyes guilty of assault with intent to murder and felony firearm for the Sept. 30, 2007, homicide of Douglas Ryan Pollok, Jr.

Reyes’ brother Eric Reyes Santiago pleaded guilty the day before as an accessory to the murder.

The brothers, both U.S. citizens, had fled to Mexico after arrest warrants were issued for them. At long last they were arrested by Mexican authorities near Guadalajara in November 2015.   The two were extradited to West Michigan to face charges.

Pollok was attending a party  at 751 Cutler St. SW. in Grand Rapids. He was standing outside with some others, when Reyes and Santiago rolled up, got out of their car, first starting shouting and then started shooting. Reyes and Santiago had mistaken the gathering for some shooters with whom they’d been beefing at an area gas station. Neither Pollok not anyone else at the party had anything to do with the earlier altercation; he was an innocent bystander.

Both men are scheduled to be sentenced April 13.

Here’s the story by Angie Jackson in mlive.

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Monday I am to deliver a talk about murder, specifically about the 1970 murder of Shelley Speet Mills. The murder has dogged me for more than  decade; it has followed investigators far longer. Finally, little by little, it’s coming together as a film. There, I’ve said it! Now I have to live into it. Almost all the footage has been gathered; there are only three interviews yet that I want to do (only one of them absolutely necessary). Now is one of the times this work is difficult and I have to be my own motivator. Still, getting ready for this talk has pushed me to begin the edit.

At any rate, we convene for lunch at noon at the Community Cabin, 220 N. Monroe Street. The talk begins immediately after chow. I hope the discussion will be useful.