Police investigating the murder of a 15-year-old boy by his teenage classmate are treating the shooting as a hate crime.
Lawrence King had been harassed by a group of boys at his Florida school, including the 14-year-old charged with his murder, since he told friends he was gay.
His fellow pupils at E.O. Green Junior High in Oxnard said the bullying started after Lawrence wore mascara, lipstick and jewellery to school.
“They teased him because he was different,” said Marissa Moreno, 13.
“But he wasn’t afraid to show himself.”
On Feb 12 Lawrence was in the school's computer lab when his alleged attacker, Brandon McInerney, walked into the room and shot him in the head. He was caught by police a few blocks away.
Lawrence was declared brain dead the following day and taken off life support on Feb 14.
The shooting has stunned residents of Oxnard, a relaxed middle-class beach community just north of Malibu.
“We’ve never had school violence like this here before, never had a school shooting,” said David Keith, a spokesman for the Oxnard Police Department.
One parent with a daughter at the school called the crime “absolutely unbelievable.”
McInerney has been charged as an adult with murder as a premeditated hate crime and gun possession. If convicted, he faces a sentence of 52 years to life in prison.
Speaking at a memorial service for Lawrence, the Rev. Dan Birchfield of Westminster Presbyterian Church said: “God knit Larry together and made him wonderfully complex. Larry was a masterpiece.”
2 comments:
Call it what you will, but this presidential campaign, I think has a great deal to do with exposing people and their prejudices. However, the shooting maybe new for this community, but it is not new to many other communities. If WE keep ignoring our prejudices, stereotypes and hatred of other groups, this is what we get tragic events such as this one. It is sad that some people's inner hatred is so immense that this would happen.
due to the ignorance and lack of education on matters such as this i am sad to sat this will continue to happen. as a parent it's your responsabilty to educate yoru child on all aspects of life.
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