July 22nd, 2009
Today a judge decided that Brandon McInerney can be held to trial and special circumstances apply, allowing him to tried as an adult for the first degree murder of Larry King. (Ventura Star)
The judge noted that McInerney didn\’t confront King in the hallway or on the playground, but waited for class to begin before shooting him.
The judge described the shooting as “the cold-blooded precision of an executioner.” He said it was premeditated, and he also found true the special circumstance that McInerney was lying in wait.
Prosecutors have yet to determine whether they will file the special circumstance against the teen. Such a step would not lengthen the juvenile\’s sentence, but it would keep the case out of the juvenile court.
Testimony to date has included evidence of pre-medititation, neo-Nazi association, and cold-blooded enactment of the crime. If convicted, McInerney may be sentenced up to 53 years to life in prison. Prosecutors have offered him a plea deal of 25 years to life.
The defense continues to use “gay panic” as their defense, more or less implying that King deserved what he got. (Ventura Star)
Defense lawyers are trying to portray King as a troubled boy and a sexual aggressor who would taunt and tease boys with flirtatious remarks and gestures such as blowing kisses at them.
They have argued in court that King was also a schoolyard bully toward McInerney and other boys. An autopsy showed that King was small in stature, standing 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighing 111 pounds, according to testimony on Monday.
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Richard W. Fitch
July 22nd, 2009
I’ll have to keep in mind that the next time someone throws an unwanted kiss my way I have the right to put a bullet through the back of their head.
Burr
July 22nd, 2009
Especially if it’s a girl.. then I can claim “straight panic”.. right? right??
Yeek
July 23rd, 2009
“But kid’s brains are undeveloped! That’s why every 14 year old murders everyone who pisses them off!”
Blah blah blah…..
Pomo
July 23rd, 2009
This is just not a good situation. I want Mcinerey punished but I work with children/teenagers and a 14 year old is not an adult. No matter how horrible the crime I don’t think it’s a good idea to start trying 14 year olds as adults. I don’t have a better idea of how to deal with these types of situations but he’s a kid. A kid who did something wrong and has many issues but life in prision isn’t the answer.
Pender
July 23rd, 2009
I’m glad the gay groups officially oppose trying him as an adult for PR reasons, but between you and me and the internet, I hope they lock the little bastard up and throw away the key.
Timothy (TRiG)
July 23rd, 2009
What’s the actual effect of trying a child as an adult? What does it, practically, mean?
Should Thompson and Venables have been tried as adults?
TRiG.
L. Junius Brutus
July 23rd, 2009
“I want Mcinerey punished but I work with children/teenagers and a 14 year old is not an adult. No matter how horrible the crime I don’t think it’s a good idea to start trying 14 year olds as adults.”
In which case he would get out within seven years (by the time he’s 21). So we should let someone get off easy who shot a classmate in the back of the head and fired once again at him to make sure that he was dead, someone who announced to other classmates that he wanted to kill this kid, someone who was a neo-Nazi, someone who had earlier bragged that his father had guns and that he could kill anyone who crossed him. Evidently, that’s someone you would want out within 7 years, especially after he’s brutally murdered someone.
“A kid who did something wrong and has many issues but life in prision isn’t the answer.”
“Something wrong”? We’re not talking about doing “something wrong”, like hitting a classmate. We’re talking about murder. Life in prison is absolutely the answer – it will punish this guy, prevent this guy from ever killing again, deter other psychos, and give justice to the victim (who lost his life).
Let this guy rot in prison for the rest of his life – he deserves nothing less, nor anything more.
L. Junius Brutus
July 23rd, 2009
“I’m glad the gay groups officially oppose trying him as an adult for PR reasons”
If it was a malevolent prosecutor (who doesn’t think that people should be punished for killing gay people), he would have used it as an excuse to not try him as an adult. These organizations exist to provide for equality for gay people. They do not exist to lobby for the rights of people who kill gay people. Hence, they shouldn’t have meddled.
Regan DuCasse
July 24th, 2009
EXACTLY, Brutus!
The facts here are, that McInerney was a bully, a boy who learned early to settle a conflict with VIOLENCE. This is an issue to blame his parents over.
McInerney, had skills enough with said firearm to load it, bring it to school concealed and then shoot a classmate he’d been threatening, in the BACK of the head…TWICE.
Then he hustles out of the school. That’s beyond premeditated.
I’m sick of people portraying L. King as the aggressor. All things considered, what ELSE could King do? He didn’t have it in him to be VIOLENT himself.
He didn’t get a weapon or assault McInerney, even in self defense. All the media talks about is how provocative King was for wearing feminine accessories and how wrong the school was for indulging that.
Oh…PUHLEEZE!
Oh SO dangerous! A boy who likes lip gloss, as opposed to a boy who likes guns.
It’s a typical, unfair and common stereotype to portray ANYONE gay as sexually aggressive. As imposing and invasive. These are the sorts of brainwashing buzz words that convince everyone that gay people are so out of control, they can’t be near ‘normal’ people.
You all know this is true.
Gay victims of horrible violence almost NEVER are discussed as completely innocent, even if ambushed by a carload of thugs, no gay panic defense is ludicrous enough.
Lawrence King is discussed as if, as Brutus said, somehow asking for a beating or worse.
McInerney was looking for a target. And since society puts the bull’s eye on the backs of gay folks, it’s no leap of logic that King was the easiest to spot. And lessening the lives of gay people in the minds of the young, King was easily and tragically expendable.
Give that boy fifty years to life. He’s dangerous and old enough to be a skilled and cold blooded killer. I don’t even have an issue with jailing dangerous guys like this until 25, then giving them the needle.
Justice isn’t served enough even with life in prison. King was a good and talented kid. HE wasn’t dangerous, despite having it as hard as McInerney, King chose blowing kisses over violence.
What’s the lesson to teach kids about THAT?
I’m still sick and mad over the release of Sean Kennedy’s killer after less than two years.
Justice is still elusive in these cases, and that is SO, so wrong for so many reasons!
Timothy (TRiG)
July 24th, 2009
On the bolded portion (deterring other psychos): no, it won’t. Psychos don’t think like that. That’s what makes them psychos.
TRiG.
L. Junius Brutus
July 24th, 2009
“On the bolded portion (deterring other psychos): no, it won’t. Psychos don’t think like that. That’s what makes them psychos.”
I referred to anyone who would attack a gay person for that reason as a “psycho”, regardless of whether that person would officially fit the label of “psychopath”.
As a matter of fact, we have a historical example of whether psychos are deterred or not. After juries finally started convicting people for the crime of lynching, there was a steep drop in the number of lynchings. There are people who won’t be deterred, but giving this guy will deter as many people as possible and send a strong message that you can’t get away with murder just because your victim happens to be gay.
Pomo
July 25th, 2009
BRUTUS, he is not a guy, he is a boy. Thats the difference. At 14 you are just beginning to figure out your own morality, sexuality, a whole list of things… At 14 you’re highly influenced. After he pays his penalty he needs to be rehabbed. No one deserves to pay for the rest of their life for something they did at 14. Even though Larry King didn’t have the choice.
Thats not justifying his actions but its also not wasting two lives. One young life wasted is enough for me. Let him do his time and educate him.
Burr
July 25th, 2009
And hopefully he can educate others..
L. Junius Brutus
July 26th, 2009
“At 14 you are just beginning to figure out your own morality, sexuality, a whole list of things… ”
Yeah. Commit a savage and premeditated murder at age 14? Who hasn’t done that?
“After he pays his penalty he needs to be rehabbed. ”
Seven years is a penalty for shooting someone in the back of his head? No, life in prison is the appropriate penalty.
“No one deserves to pay for the rest of their life for something they did at 14. ”
“Something they did” does happen to be a vicious, cold-blooded murder. It’s not stealing a candy bar, it’s murdering someone. Even though you proclaim that people are only trying to figure out morality at age 14, most people at age 14 know that murder is… something bad. The fact that you want to unleash this little monster upon society once again blows my mind – even aside from the obvious injustice.
“Thats not justifying his actions but its also not wasting two lives. ”
Nope, he wasted his own life by pulling the trigger on someone else. Stop trying to blame others for “wasting” this vicious murderer’s life.
Tommy
July 26th, 2009
I’m definitely not a fan of prison rape, nor am I someone to make light of it. But given the circumstances, I would totally not mind if McInerney learns about it the hard way.
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