The testimony of Faheem Thomas-Childs' mother.

From Philly.com:

Patricia Arnold remembers the message to her son Faheem Thomas-Childs - the same admonition she has given to all her children for years - when she sent him off to school on Feb. 11, 2004.

"Watch out for the cars, watch out for strangers, and if somebody's shooting, duck," Arnold said in testimony yesterday.

If you are one of those responsible for making the world this kind of place, I am certain there is a particularly nasty circle of Hell waiting for you.

Faheem, 10, was shot in the head outside the entrance to his North Philadelphia elementary school that day, caught in the crossfire of what prosecutors said was a battle between drug gangs. Two of the alleged instigators of the gunfire, Kennell Spady, 21, and Kareem Johnson, 22, are on trial in the murder case.

Prosecutors remained confident even though several witnesses have backed away from statements they made to police about the gun battle, in which more than 90 shots were fired within minutes.

Seconds after the gunmen fled, Philadelphia Police Officer Eugene Frasier arrived and found Faheem lying unresponsive on the ground by Peirce Elementary School.

Faheem's condition was so dire, he said, that officers drove him directly to Temple University Hospital. There, a school official handed Frasier a backpack found next to Faheem to help police learn the boy's identity. When he opened the backpack, a Valentine's Day card fell out, the officer said.

"It said, 'I love you, Mom,' " Frasier testified.

May God have mercy on his soul.

The 11-year veteran officer said in an interview later that seeing that card left him in tears.

His description of the Valentine cleared half the courtroom - the half with Faheem's family - as several began weeping uncontrollably.

Arnold said her son picked up the card, which encouraged its recipient to have a heart check-up, at a local drugstore.

"He always cared," she said. "He cared so much."

After the shooting, officials pleaded for help from an outraged public and mustered a $100,000 reward. But fear of reprisal from those involved, officials said, has made it difficult to get information.

That was evident when the trial opened Tuesday, when the first witness before Common Pleas Court Judge Jane Cutler Greenspan - Spady and Johnson waived their right to a trial by jury - said she could no longer recall what she earlier swore she saw.

And yesterday, another witness, Russell Brown, said he no longer remembered being at the scene of the shooting despite previously identifying several alleged participants.

"I'm not even sure where I was at the time," Brown, 42, testified.

Brown and Renee Williams - also 42 and also remembering little yesterday - had told police they had seen both defendants near the school about the time of the shooting.

Prosecutors said such obstacles are more common than not in homicide cases in the city.

"It angers me. You're disappointed. You're frustrated," Assistant District Attorney Mark Gilson said. "I still find it hard to accept the fact that these people can't come into court and tell the truth."

With that, Gilson pointedly complimented the testimony of Letitia Briscoe, 28, who was unflinching in her recollection of the day.

She said she was walking down the street when she saw a man holding a toddler muttering to himself and then later heard him saying: "It's not the right place. There's kids out here."

Briscoe said she then saw another man walking from a car and coming toward the first gesturing wildly, cursing and yelling.

" 'We're going to do this,' " Briscoe recalled the man saying. " 'We're going to do it right now.' "

Then three men emerged from the car.

She said that as she walked away, she heard gunfire start and then continue from a variety of weapons. She said she took cover behind a junked car and heard bullets ricocheting, glass breaking and children screaming.

Moments later, she said, she saw the car the men had exited speeding away in reverse.

Faheem's mother said two of her daughters were turned away by a crossing guard during the shooting. When they returned home, she said, they told her a boy had been shot.

She sent a daughter back to the school to see if Faheem was all right. Arnold said her daughter told her that she did not see him and that everyone in his class was crying.

Then she said she looked out the window and saw a police officer sobbing outside before knocking on her door.

She was taken to the hospital, where her family - including eight children in addition to Faheem - held vigil for five days.

"I told my kids to stop crying," Arnold said. "I didn't want that to be the last thing he heard."

Bless and protect Faheem's family, Lord.