BOSTON, July 10, 2012—Three young men were arraigned in Roxbury yesterday after separate weekend gun arrests that followed police chases in that neighborhood, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.

Two defendants, RAHIYM MERVIN (D.O.B. 10/16/92) of Revere and HERBY PAUL (D.O.B. 2/4/95) of Hyde Park were charged following their Friday night arrests after Boston Police tried to pull them over for having a cracked windshield, and TYSHAWN LEWIS-SMITH (D.O.B. 5/13/92) of Roxbury was charged after officers spotted him repeatedly patting his waistband while riding his bicycle early Sunday morning.

Prosecutors assigned to Roxbury District Court recommended $25,000 cash bail for Paul, who was charged with unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition, unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, failure to stop for police, and trespassing. Judge Kenneth Fiandaca imposed $10,000 on that case and set bail at $300 for Mervin, Paul’s co-defendant, who is charged with unlawful possession of ammunition and trespassing.

Boston Police spotted a grey 2000 Chevrolet Cavalier with three occupants and a noticeable crack in the windshield driving on Martin Luther King Boulevard just before 7:30 Friday evening. Because the crack was a civil safety standard violation, the officers signaled for the car to pull over. Instead of pulling to the right, however, the operator – later identified as Paul – pulled to the left of the roadway and came to a stop in the left turn lane near Walnut Avenue.  Officers directed him to the right lane, and Paul complied.

As the officers exited their cruiser, however, Paul allegedly accelerated away from them and turned onto Walnut Avenue, running a red light and nearly striking an MBTA bus on Humboldt Avenue. The officers continued to follow the Chevrolet until South Charlame Terrace, where the three occupants bailed out. In addition to finding Boston Public Schools paperwork with Paul’s name on them in the vehicle, officers observed two rounds of what appeared to be live ammunition, one between the center console and passenger’s seat and the other just outside the passenger’s side door.

Additional responding officers quickly located two of the three occupants in different back yards nearby. Officers found a Taurus .38 Special loaded with five rounds of ammunition in a recycling bin next to Paul. When Boston Police deployed a thermal imaging device on it, they could see that it was warmer than its surroundings, suggesting that it still retained its carrier’s body heat.

In Lewis-Smith’s case, prosecutors recommended that the defendant be held on $40,000 cash bail. Judge Fiandaca imposed $7,500. Lewis-Smith was charged with unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of a firearm as a second offense, unlawful possession of ammunition, possession of a Class A substance with intent to distribute, violating the state’s drug laws in a school zone, and resisting arrest.

Officers were on patrol in the area of St. Alphonsus Street and Horadan Way just after 1:15 Sunday morning when they saw the defendant riding a bicycle out of the Annunciation Road housing development onto Prentiss Street. When he saw the officers, he allegedly began patting his waistband – a sign the officers recognized from federal law enforcement training to be a characteristic of an armed gunman. Lewis-Smith allegedly reversed direction and started heading outbound on the Southwest Corridor while looking back over his shoulder at the officers, who noted that the bike had no headlight as required under Massachusetts law.

Officers approached Lewis-Smith on Tremont Street in their cruiser and asked if they could speak with him. He allegedly declined and reversed direction again, now travelling against traffic and while continuing to clutch his waistband.

Lewis-Smith allegedly tried to lose police as he travelled at a high rate of speed along a winding route from Tremont to Horadan Way, where another group of officers parked their cruiser at the St. Alphonsus Street intersection. As Lewis-Smith sped from the pursuing officers, he allegedly drove right into that cruiser. When he fell from his bicycle, his shirt rode up on his waist and exposed the butt of a handgun.

The officers moved to secure the gun and take the defendant into custody, but he allegedly struggled with them. The gun fell from his waistband onto the pavement, where one officer kicked it away from the suspect until he could be handcuffed. During the booking process, officers located five plastic bags containing a brown powder consistent with heroin packaged for resale. A review of his criminal record revealed that he had previously served 18 months for a 2010 firearms conviction.

Mervin was represented by attorney Randy Gioia and Paul by attorney Kevin McDonald. Both will return to court on Aug. 3. Lewis-Smith was represented by attorney Richard Doyle and will return to court on Aug. 20.

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All defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.