Kevin Maurice Braziel, West Broadway Homicide Victim Who Lingered Two Weeks At Death's Door, Had Extensive Criminal Record And Documented His Thug Life On Facebook...

Facebook photo used under First Amendment Fair Comment
and Criticism, blog post by John Hoff

Kevin M. Braziel, whose name was not revealed in the mass media until after he died some two weeks after being shot on West Broadway near Olympic Cafe Plus, had an extensive criminal record. He was also a frequent user of Facebook and documented his life online, though probably not with the intention of providing an object lesson in what life-headed-for-prison-or-the-grave looks like.

That is, however, how things turned out...

First, in regard to Braziel's criminal record, here is what MNCIS shows in the State of Minnesota for criminal charges:

The Tale Of The Legal Red Tape 

27-CR-09-61276 BRAZIEL, KEVIN MAURICE 08/10/1991 12/15/2009 Hennepin Criminal/Traffic/Petty Downtown Mabley, Daniel H. Crim/Traf Mandatory Under Court Jurisdiction Aggravated Robbery First Degree Assault in the Second Degree

The assault charge dismissed but he pled to Aggravated First Degree Robbery. Sentenced to prison for 36 months with credit for 121 days. See, I think if he'd just been in jail longer during his first brush with the law, the lesson may have gone deeper.

Kevin died owing $128 to the courts over this matter. Interestingly, however, his voting rights had been restored.

27-CR-12-16897 111228365 BRAZIEL, KEVIN MAURICE 08/10/1991 05/30/2012 Hennepin Criminal/Traffic/Petty Downtown Crim/Traf Mandatory Under Court Jurisdiction Traffic Regulation - Alter or Make Fictitious Insurance ID Card

Pled guilty. He was still on probation over this when he died.

27-CR-13-6390 BRAZIEL, KEVIN MAURICE 08/10/1991 02/28/2013 Hennepin Criminal/Traffic/Petty Downtown Crim/Traf Mandatory Under Court Jurisdiction TRAFFIC-DRIVERS LICENSE-DRIVING AFTER REVOCATION DRUGS - POSSESS OVER 1.4 GRAMS MARIJUANA IN MOTOR VEHICLE

Pled guilty on the traffic matter and the drug charge was dismissed. Looks like he got "STS" (Sentence to Service) and was on probation. Died owing $128 on this charge. I double checked to make sure this was accurate, since he owed exactly the same amount on ANOTHER charge. Did I make a mistake and click on the wrong charge?

Nope. Looks like he owed the same exact amount on both charges. One of life's little coincidences. It is probably NOT a coincidence, however, that there's another Kevin Braziel who was born in 1974 and has lived in Bloomington and New Hope. The OTHER Kevin Braziel has only minor convictions in Minnesota for driving under the influence and speeding.

A Thug Life Documented On Facebook

Kevin's middle name was actually "Maurice" but on Facebook he was Kevin Soicyjakkboy (So Icy Jack Boy) Braziel. His last Facebook posting was June 21, when he posed with an Audi A8 while "flipping the bird" to the camera.

The car was apparently his, and not just a vehicle he was posing in front of. The license plate is not completely visible in this photo but the last letters are "HHN," leading me to believe it is a personalized plate.

A photo bragging about possession of the A8 took place on June 19. Note there is some kind of sign on a tree. Is that a memorial of some kind?

There is another photo taken in March of a vehicle which appears to be a Benz. The two vehicles are similar but close examination reveals this car, below, to be a different vehicle, a Mercedes-Benz. In a conversation about the photo, Braziel claims he "picked up" the vehicle "last month."

There is a duplex visible in the background with the numbers "1015 and 1017." I do not have further info at this time.

There was a photo taken in June with Kevin posing next to a young boy, who appears to be between 6 and 8. The photo appears to be at Mall of America. The photo was reproduced on the Facebook profile of a friend of Kevin. That friend described Kevin as the "uncle" of the child.

JNS blog is not reposting the photo due to the presence of an innocent minor. 

Here's another photo, taken in May, of the oh-so-charming Mr. Braziel flipping the bird. One seldom thinks of one's final legacy when posting stupid crap on Facebook, does one? 

That same month, Kevin took pictures of an all-red outfit. 

Red and blue are notoriously known to be gang colors in North Minneapolis. Indeed, most responsible parents in North Minneapolis won't allow their children to wear red or blue due to the possibility of their child being mistaken for a gang member. 

One commenter on the photo (whose Facebook profile is also full of images of the "thug life") commented as follows on the red clothing:

"OK I see u true down"

To which Braziel replied: 

"#######TrUUUU"

Note that in a photo I took of the shooting scene, two individuals can be seen wearing red. 

In March (it seems to have been a very active time for Kevin on Facebook) he posted a blurry picture of a wad of money and the following comment:

#GOT DAT $ MONEY FLIPPING LIKE A CARTWHEEL

BITCH TELL ME HOW DAT FOREIGN CAR FEEL

To which JNS blog replies: What are you feeling NOW, Kevin? And what were you feeling those last two weeks in the hospital? 

Braziel also posted a photo of the INTERIOR of a vehicle. Note the pack of Newports. 

I tell you, for those who just CANNOT STAND annoying "new car smell," nothing takes care of the problem quicker than a cheap pack of Newports.

There are numerous pictures of other cars on his Facebook profile, as well, but these appear to have been cars Kevin liked, not cars he owned. 

Here is one of Kevin looking pensive, perhaps contemplating the short life and likely end of a North Minneapolis thug.

In the photo above, a neck tattoo is just barely visible. It seems Kevin got the tattoo in September of 2012, when he posted pictures of his new "ink."

I'm not clear on what the tattoo says. "Yolo?" What does THAT mean? Apparently, it is slang for "You Only Live Once" and therefore a sort of text-talk slogan of hedonism, click here and here. A funny musical commentary on YOLO can be found here. 

Here is a photo of Kevin with his "grill." This was taken in August of 2102.

Here's the inevitable connection to Chicago, which can be found on the Facebook profile of virtually every thug who dies in North Minneapolis.

What actual connections Braziel may have had to Chicago are unknown. This photo may have simply been a style statement. He does not claim to be from Chicago on Facebook and, in fact, claims Minneapolis as his "hometown." But, inevitably, one finds (at the very least) a "shout out" to Chicago on the profiles of dead North Minneapolis thugs.

A Tangential Story About "Chicago Cake"

Which reminds me of a story which is connected only tenuously to the subject at hand. On June 22, I went to a pawn shop in St. Paul to obtain a cheap used chainsaw to saw up the tree which fell in my front yard, a feat that took about FOUR DAYS. While in the pawn shop, I needed to use the bathroom so (since there's no bathrooms for customers in pawn shops, EVER, in my considerable experience) I went to an Arab-owned soul food and fried chicken place across the street.

Like a good citizen, I made a minor purchase after using their bathroom, which was FOR CUSTOMER USE ONLY. Looking at the dessert rack, I noticed they were selling "Chicago Cake."

Which cake, I asked, was the Chicago Cake?

The man pointed to some cake. It wasn't the cake I figured. I told him I would have thought it was the cake with the strawberry syrup on the top, because it looks like a BULLET WOUND. I asked him, really, does anything good come from Chicago?

Perhaps, I suggested, he should sell MINNEAPOLIS Cake. That is the kind of cake I would like to purchase. The owner of the shop smiled a forced little grimace of politeness as I spun on my heel and walked out of the store, "good citizen" beverage purchase in my hand.

A Lingering, Horrible End

Numerous friends of Kevin Braziel have reproduced his Facebook photos on the profiles in tribute and, also, there are t-shirts being produced which have likenesses taken directly from Kevin's facebook profile. Already, this thug is being celebrated like he is a martyr.

A martyr for what? For bad lifestyle choices?

Braziel took two weeks to die. In that time, was he conscious? Did he feel pain? Did he try to pray to his Maker for forgiveness for a lifestyle of crime and drug use? Or did he only wish vengeance upon his enemies?

The killer or killers of Kevin Braziel are still at large. Somebody knows who they are. If that "somebody" will comment upon this blog, I am sure the information will make its way to the police. I have made it known many a time that I am not the NSA, and I have no technical capacity to determine the identities of commenters.

If you want to drop a dime, well, insert coin below.