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originally posted by: TrueBrit
a reply to: Vector99
Surely the important issue is that this one could?
These things should be weighed against outcome, and against the capacity of those involved to deal with the circumstances prevailing. This child headshot an intruder. THIS child WAS capable. End of issue surely?
Updated at 9:00 p.m. with details from witnesses in the neighborhood.
Updated at 9:00 p.m. with details from witnesses in the neighborhood.
ST. LOUIS COUNTY • Police believe an 11-year-old boy fatally shot a 16-year-old boy who was trying to break into the child’s house Thursday, but some in the neighborhood question the circumstances of the shooting.
At least two witnesses say the younger boy was the aggressor.
What appears clear is that 11-year-old shot the teen about 2:25 p.m., even as the shooter’s 4-year-old sister was inside the home in the 10700 block of Hallwood Drive.
A few hours later, St. Louis County police issued a statement describing the incident as a home invasion. The statement said another person had accompanied the 16-year-old who was killed.
“It’s troubling to say the least and shows that too many young people have access to handguns and the results are usually tragic,” Sgt. Brian Schellman said.
Schellman said police believe the two suspects had tried to break into the home in the Castle Point neighborhood in north St. Louis County several times Thursday.
Police said Thursday afternoon they believe the door to the home was unlocked, as there were no signs of forced entry.
Once the suspect got inside, Schellman said, the 11-year-old fired one shot and it struck the teenager in the head, fatally wounding him. His body was found in the front foyer of the home.
Schellman said the second suspect might have not have entered because the shot scared him away.
But that narrative doesn’t square with Donna Jackson, who lives across the street.
She said she saw the 11-year-old shoot the 16-year-old point-blank in the head as the two were talking on a half brick wall near the home’s front door. “It was not a break-in,” said Jackson, 45. “He shot him in the head.”
She said it was traumatic to see something like that. “There wasn’t a reason why it happened like it happened,” she said. “It was really sad.”
Another neighbor two doors down from the shooting offers a similar account.
Jazmyne Clark, 18, said the 11-year-old was on the front porch when he called to the 16-year-old to approach him. She said the teen might have been seeking to sell the younger child a cellphone. When the 16-year-old reached the front door, Clark said, the 11-year-old shot him, with the teen falling forward into the open front door.
“He was never in the house,” Clark said. “He wasn’t breaking in at all. He was just trying to sell him his phone.”
Clark said the 11-year-old had been in front of the house earlier in the day waving a gun around. She said that the boy had caused problems in the neighborhood before and that this kind of thing was bound to happen eventually.
Another neighbor, Anna Carvin, 25, said the 11-year-old had previously broke into her own home and stole cellphones.
Sharon Taylor, who lives next door to the shooting and says she is the cousin of the 11-year-old’s father, disputes the notion that the boy is a problem child. “He’s respectful,” Taylor said, “very respectful.”
Even so, she said, she doesn’t buy the home-invasion account.
“I don’t believe someone would come through the front door at this time of day,” Taylor said.
When told of the witness accounts from the neighborhood, Schellman, of the county police, stressed that the investigation was developing.
“Obviously the investigation is extremely early,” Schellman said. “Many, many interviews have to be conducted. We would urge more strongly than anything, that anyone up there who has pertinent information about the case, we have to hear from them.”
When asked if the police still stood by the home-invasion account, Schellman said: “Until we’ve talked to everybody, I don’t know if we can contradict or back off of that right now.”
Earlier, police said the person who accompanied the 16-year-old was in custody. Police said they were trying to determine why the young children had been left home alone with access to a gun.
The children’s mother told police she had purchased the gun for protection because the family had previous incidents of break-in attempts.
Crime-scene tape surrounded the home, a modest white wood and brick ranch, on Thursday afternoon.
Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story contained an incorrect age of the deceased suspect.
This story actually just made me sick to my stomach, i'm out on this.