Two men charged in the stray-bullet shooting of a Bronx schoolgirl were placed in protective custody yesterday because they fear for their safety at Rikers Island.
Cleve Smith, 20, and Dwayne Taylor, 23, were among five thugs arraigned in the wounding of Vada Vasquez, 15, who was shot as she walked home from school last week.
“He’s faced a fair amount of abuse while in custody,” lawyer Matthew Kluger said of Smith, 20, the alleged ringleader.
The street toughs all entered not-guilty pleas on charges of attempted murder. The protective-custody requests were approved by Judge Margaret Clancy.
A Correction Department official said the suspects already were in what’s called “close custody,” similar to protective custody, in which inmates are separated from the prison population.
Vada, meanwhile, continues to make slow progress at Lincoln Hospital, her older sister said yesterday.
Mandy Vasquez said that Vada seems to improve every day but that she was still unable to speak with visitors.