Suffolk County prosecutors will argue against the appeals of two convicted murderers tomorrow in separate cases arising out of the shooting deaths of innocent men felled by gang violence, District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.

Members of Conley’s Appeals Division will challenge the appeals of ANDRE “DRE ROCK” WALKER (D.O.B. 8/5/80), currently serving a life term plus six to eight years for the 2000 shooting death of 18-year-old Francis Stephens and the non-fatal shooting of a second victim, and JOHN GOMES (D.O.B. 2/19/77), also serving life plus nine to 10 years for the 2002 shooting death of 45-year-old Ildobrando Correia.

Both defendants were convicted of first-degree murder and other offenses at their respective trials. As with all first-degree murder cases, their convictions are automatically reviewed by the Supreme Judicial Court.

Evidence introduced at Walker’s 2005 trial proved that he was a member of the Franklin Hill Giants street gang when he shot Stephens to death and nearly killed a 19-year-old surviving victim on Sept. 16, 2000. Prosecutors said Walker was trying to avenge the shooting of another Franklin Hill gang member that he believed had been committed by rivals from Esmond Street.

Evidence showed that Walker drove to the intersection of Glenway and Harlem streets in Esmond Street territory and opened fire on the two victims, who had no gang affiliation at all and were simply walking in the area. Walker fired at least a dozen times during the incident, continuing the barrage even after Stephens had been knocked to the ground by previous shots.

At Gomes’ 2007 trial, prosecutors demonstrated that the defendant – linked to an ongoing and violent dispute between two rival Cape Verdean groups – used a high-capacity 9mm firearm to fire 18 rounds into Correia’s vehicle, killing him, on Ridgewood Street on the night of Aug. 13, 2002.

Gomes believed Correia to be a member of a rival faction. He was mistaken. Correia was a hard-working family man and youth soccer coach who had just dropped off an elderly co-worker. Gomes later fled the state but was apprehended in Florida a year later.

Gomes’ first trial came to an abrupt end when he tried to strangle his own attorney on the proceedings’ first day. At the conclusion of the second trial, prosecutors successfully sought jail time for a trial witness who refused to testify even under a grant of immunity.

Assistant District Attorney Kathleen Celio is the appellate prosecutor assigned to the Walker case. Former Suffolk prosecutor Dennis Collins tried the case. Assistant District Attorney David McGowan will argue against the Gomes appeal. That trial was led by Assistant District Attorney Patrick Haggan.

The appeals will begin at 9:00 in courtroom one on the second floor of the John Adams Courthouse. They may be watched online here.