Nightclub stabbing victim was soon to be a father

All of Bryant Nunez's plans in life - marrying his pregnant girlfriend, finishing his GED, seeking a job as a correction officer - were about preparing for fatherhood, family members said.

But Nunez, 19, will never see the baby boy his girlfriend, Chrystal Vivas, 18, is expecting next month. He was fatally stabbed behind a Levittown nightclub Saturday morning.

Jovany Huddleston, 23, of Brentwood, who is accused of killing Nunez, also of Brentwood, pleaded not guilty Sunday to a second-degree murder charge at First District Court in Hempstead. Huddleston is being held without bail and is due back in court Wednesday.

Ivan Nunez, Nunez's father, said his son had "a big heart" and loved playing basketball, watching movies and spending time with Vivas, whom he had dated for about four years. She was not with Nunez at the nightclub, said family members, who added that the pair was seldom apart. "He adored Chrystal," Ivan Nunez said.

In an interview, Vivas said "I loved him very much and I'll be missing him every day," and that she knows he would have "been a great father." Her father, Tito Vivas of Brentwood, said the baby's name will be Evan Bryant.

Bryant Nunez lived with his parents and had a job working in the warehouse of a Target store, family members said.

Police have said the stabbing occurred about 3:40 a.m. outside Shy Lounge on Hempstead Turnpike. The stabbing stemmed from an altercation that started inside the club, police said.

Huddleston is also charged with stabbing Rainero Ramirez, 18, of Brentwood, in the neck. Ramirez was treated and released from Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow, police said. He could not be reached Sunday.

Police have said Ramirez, Bryant Nunez and Huddleston didn't know each other before the altercation.

Huddleston showed little emotion during a court appearance Sunday attended by many of his family members.

One man who identified himself as a brother, Samuel, called Huddleston "not the type of personality" to be violent and said his family is "remorseful for the victim." An attorney for Huddleston declined to comment.

A wake will be held for Bryant Nunez at the Michael J. Grant Funeral Home in Brentwood from 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday. A funeral Mass is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Friday at St. Anne's Roman Catholic Church in Brentwood. Burial will follow at Queen of All Saints Cemetery in Central Islip.