Posted on 10/26/2003 4:41:29 AM PST by lifacs
Sunday, October 26
Teen pulling prank killed by neighbor
By Sarah Eisenhauer and Cynthia Kopkowski, Palm Beach Post Staff Writers Sunday, October 26, 2003
A birthday celebration capped off by an early-morning round of mischievous doorbell ringing ended in the death of a Boca Raton-area teenager early Saturday after a neighbor who believed his home was about to be burgled shot and killed the boy, deputies said.
Mark Andrew Drewes, a popular Pope John Paul II High School sophomore who celebrated his 16th birthday at a party Friday night, died from a single gunshot wound at Delray Medical Center. The shooting occurred shortly after 12:30 a.m. in the Woodbury neighborhood, a quiet, upper middle class neighborhood in the Boca Del Mar region.
The man who shot Drewes, Jay Steven Levin, 40, was not arrested, Palm Beach County sheriff's spokeswoman Diane Carhart said. Investigators questioned Levin at his home at 6115 Woodbury Road and collected evidence but did not take him into custody, Carhart said.
"He's a homeowner there," she said. "He was very cooperative."
The Palm Beach County State Attorney's Office will review the evidence and determine whether Levin's actions were justifiable self-defense or grounds for criminal charges, spokesman Mike Edmondson said.
When Levin, a Palm Beach County businessman who lived alone, was awakened from his sleep by a knock at the door early Saturday, he armed himself with a handgun and answered it, deputies said. He told deputies he saw someone he believed was holding a weapon.
Levin fired one shot, hitting Drewes, according to deputies. The boy ran into a neighbor's yard and collapsed.
"He feared for his life," Carhart said of Levin, adding that the teenager was 6-feet-2 and 210 pounds. "So he's a big 16-year-old."
Gathered at a family member's home Saturday morning, Drewes' relatives disputed Levin's self-defense claim and said they were furious that he was not arrested and charged with a crime Saturday.
"How can they call that self-defense?" said a family member who asked not to be identified. "If they thought it was a burglar, what kind of burglar knocks?"
The previous night, the large family and a bunch of friends had gathered at the house on Woodbury, where the Drewes have lived for about 10 years, for birthday cake. The teenager had been eagerly looking forward to three things: his 16th birthday, when he would be able to trade in his learner's driving permit for the real thing; the family party; and his school's homecoming dance Saturday.
"It was such a good day," said his grandmother Patricia Drewes, who drove from her Stuart home for the birthday party. "He was so happy. He told me it was the best day of his life."
Throughout the evening Friday, Drewes and his friends darted back and forth between his home and the fall festival at nearby St. Jude Catholic Church and school, where he graduated from eighth grade two years ago.
About 11:30 p.m., Drewes and a friend decided to go for a walk, family members said.
"They were playing knock on the door and run," said one family member. "They were being silly. They weren't bad kids."
Family members said the teen who was with Drewes told them he was not holding anything in his hand.
Investigators did not find a weapon on the victim, Carhart said. They confiscated Levin's handgun as evidence, she said.
Carhart said ringing doorbells and running is not generally considered to be a crime.
Family contends teen was shot in back
The sheriff's office would not release the name of the teenager who was with Drewes Saturday morning. Nor would it confirm the family's assertion that morgue officials told them Saturday afternoon that Drewes was shot in the back.
Carhart said the sheriff's office did not know when an autopsy was to take place.
A shirtless and red-eyed Levin answered the door to his neatly landscaped home Saturday morning, but said only, "I can't talk to you," in response to a reporter's questions.
State records show Levin ran his own business called Caxin Consulting Inc. from his home since 2001. He filed papers dissolving that corporation in August. Before that, he was listed as president of two other businesses, which are now inactive, the Halifax Group Inc. and L&L Accounting Inc.
Levin has a concealed weapons permit, according to state records.
He has lived at 6115 Woodbury, which has a market value of $195,000, since December 1996, according to county property appraiser records. It's on the next block from the Drewes home, several houses up the street.
Levin's doorbell was not the only one the boys rang Saturday morning. Residents up and down the 6100 block of Woodbury reported being awakened by ringing doorbells and knocks shortly after midnight. Most said they sloughed it off or answered the door, found nobody there and went back to bed. But a second round of frantic pounding and shouting from Drewes' friend minutes later caught their attention.
"It was pounding, pounding," said Lauren Hahn, one of several residents who talked to the boy through her front door, then called 911. "He said 'Call 911. My friend's been shot.' He was hysterical."
Droopy-eyed neighbors repeated the same story as they gathered Saturday morning in small groups up and down the block, some just a few yards away from blood stains where Drewes fell.
Carol Quiroga, who lives across the street from Levin, heard nothing outside as she made her way to bed minutes before the shooting -- no arguing, no scuffling. A loud "pop," broke the silence, followed by someone saying calmly, "Call 911" once, then again, she said. What sounded like a boy's voice came next, saying "Help. I need help."
She expressed the same disbelief shared by Drewes' family and several neighbors.
"What is so important that you are defending that you need a gun?" said Quiroga, the mother of two teenage boys, before breaking into tears.
"Teenage boys do things like that," she said.
Determining whether Levin's actions were protected by the state's self-defense laws now falls to State Attorney Barry Krischer's office. Someone can use force to protect his home if he think it's being burgled, Edmondson said, but it can only equal the force he's being threatened by.
And that law doesn't generally protect homeowners who use deadly force against someone coming into their yards or on their sidewalks, Edmondson said. That's considered trespassing.
"A trespass would not constitute a breach of someone's safety," he said.
If Krischer's office determines that Levin acted legally, the case is closed, Edmondson said. If the state attorney believes it was an unjustified killing, worthy of a second-degree murder charge or a lesser offense, he will charge Levin. If the evidence isn't clear-cut and could point to a first-degree murder charge, then Krischer will refer it to the grand jury, Edmondson said.
A man in Louisiana was cleared of wrongdoing in 1993 after he shot a Halloween-costumed Japanese exchange student knocking on his door looking for a party in 1992. He turned himself in after a grand jury had indicted him on charges of manslaughter in the killing of Yoshihiro Hattori of Nagoya, Japan. Hattori's friend testified in the trial that he was carrying a camera when they knocked on Rodney Peairs' door.
A shattered Drewes family Saturday described Mark as an A student and soccer player, the type of kid who easily made friends with just about everyone he met. More relatives from Brazil are expected to arrive today, along with Mark's father, Gregory, who is captain of a private yacht and was in France Saturday.
Many of Drewes' classmates would learn of his death at Pope John Paul II High's homecoming dance Saturday night, said the Rev. Guy Fiano, the school's president. Counselors were scheduled to be on hand at the dance and Monday at the school, a Catholic private school attended by 925 students, including 250 in Drewes' sophomore class. A prayer service is planned Monday for the "very well loved" student, Fiano said.
"It's very, very sad," he said. "I think it's going to be a very stressful week."
Student called 'very polite, very respectful'
Word began to spread Saturday morning through St. Jude's festival, a few blocks from where the shooting occurred. Standing amid the cotton candy vendors and whirling carnival rides, several attendees recalled the slain teenager as friendly and well-liked.
Classmate Danielle Denofa, 16, put her hand over her mouth and gasped when she heard the news.
"He was really nice," said Denofa, who attended YMCA teen camp with Drewes this summer. "I can't believe that happened."
Tracy McCarver, who taught Drewes math at St. Jude Catholic School, remembered him as a "very polite, very respectful" youngster with "a good sense of humor."
After this afternoon's youth Mass at St. Jude, members of his Life Teen group, a faith-based social organization, are expected to attend a special meeting, said Kevin Cleary, the church's religious education director and youth minister.
"Everyone's in a state of shock because of the senselessness of it," he said. "He was a boy's boy."
He called Drewes a "delightful" young man who could be relied on to help with every pancake breakfast, raffle and car wash that cropped up on his youth group's schedule. Before every Sunday night Life Teen meeting, Drewes was there setting up tables, Cleary said. When they ended, Drewes stayed to clean up.
"He was a beautiful, beautiful boy," said his aunt, Renata Piza. "He goes to church every week. He was so excited about turning 16."
Grandmother Drewes said he always greeted her on the phone by saying, "I love you, Nana."
"He's what you'd call the ideal son, just too good to be true," she said. "If there was some way I could understand this. It was so pointless."
sarah_eisenhauer@pbpost.com,cynthia_kopkowski@pbpost.com
So they had haraassed the man before to know that he would overreact--
They were harassing him because they knew he would over react--
Looks kike you let the cat out of the bag.
It is well known that curfew violations carry the death penalty.
"What is so important that you are defending that you need a gun?" said Quiroga, the mother of two teenage boys, before breaking into tears.
At the same time, I have trouble envisioning not looking out a window, checking the door before getting ready for bed, etc. All opportunities to become aware that something is going on on the witness' street.
But then, I live in a 90 year old house, and used to tend bar in a biker bar where the clientelle was pretty laid back until some wannabe came in and started something, so I have an eye/ear for trouble brewing. Anything out of the ordinary becomes the object of investigation.
First off, who is to say having a firearm in the home renders someone other than "normal people"? In my State, not having a firearm in your home is abnormal, if you consider the majority "normal". Here, building walls around your property is only an accumulator for snow drifts in the winter and a grand way to cut off any summer breezes. Better to be able to see what is going on and act appropriately than cower behind a wall and be surprised. Note also, we have some of the lowest rates of violent and property crime in the nation..
That said, If the homeowner stepped outside and shot the fleeing kid in the back, it is murder. There is no justification for shooting someone who has committed no violent act and is retreating.
Alternately, other factors (death threats from another source, for instance) nay have prompted the homeowner to respond inappropriately to a mere prank. If this can be shown in court, the homeowner may have a defense.
The most dangerous people in the world are simply scared. To try and point the finger one way or the other in the absence of the full picture is being a bit premature.
I regularly have teens show up on my doorstep, but then, I have a teenage granddaughter. Some of these guys (and girls) look pretty freaky by our generation's standards, but their eyes are clear, and under the trappings of a youthful search for identity are some bright, decent adults-to-be.
I don't come to the door with gun in hand (I have other items in reach which will give me time to upgrade if necessary). But if someone tries to break that door down, the picture changes significantly.
Mistakes were made on both sides here. The kid should not have been ringing this guy's doorbell, for one.. The guy should not have shot the kid, for another... The courts will have to sort it out from there. Damned shame for all involved.
What I suggested was that certain "abnormal" people might well lie in wait for the unwary innocent person to foolishly ring the doorbell.
While this is a tragic situation, and the guy may be guilty as a Clinton, I really hate 'Trial by Press'.
tick bang bang tick. Time's up! You can shoot now.
Such situations commonly do not give a second or two.
Criminal perpetrators will not stop a couple of seconds, their minds are allready made up, there is no decision to be made. You can call it off right up until the hammer falls, but if you have reason to suspect a threat to your life, you'd better be ready.
A license to carry concealed, or even the possession of a firearm is not a 'license to kill', as many in the press would put it, but rather the enormous responsibility of protecting yourself and others without causing harm to the undeserving. Nothing will give as close a perspective on the responsibility police officers face daily as carrying a weapon in public as a civillian, where inappropriately producing the weapon can be considered assault with a deadly weapon.
With that in mind, most concealed weapons permit holders will be sure they have a situation in which deadly force is appropriate before the weapon is produced. You have to be aware of your surroundings to not be surprised.
IMHO, this guy was scared of someone and the kid happened to knock on the wrong door at the wrong time. It could be that he was overtired, neurotic, and shot out of aggravation or petulence, perhaps without intending to hit anyone. But then, this is for the court to decide. Otherwise, there remains a presumption of innocence in our court system, which many have forgotten here, and especially in the Press, who would take on the role of judge, jury, and executioner.
We were being kids. In a day and age where murder and mayhem were not splattered all over the TV screen, when high schools shooting made reference to the team's standings in rifle competition, before car alarms, and when you (or your dad) could order a rifle or pistol by sending a check to Herter's and filling out the form and get it in the mail, provided you were old enough.
As you said, we live in way different times. It is to the great benefit of politicians and industry alike to keep the people frightened and then produce the 'solutions' to the prooblems, which commonly they themselves create.
Columbine massacres, babies in dumpsters, widespread hard drug use, even street gangs were alien concepts to most of America until the Media brought all the bloody ills of the world into your living room. As we perceive ourselves, we will be. The pollsters best understand the self-fulfilling nature of their prophesies, by morphing the debate farther and farther away from what used to be regarded as traditional values.
Simply enough, the Press can't stand absolutes such as "abortion is murder" or homosexuality is an abombination to God", so they attack the core Judeo-Christian values which used to apply, at the very least in appearance, and continue to present aberrations of humanity as normal, everyday events instead of the horrorshows they are. Peoples' expectations change as well. The ability to shock someone over mothers dumping babies in trash cans wrapped in plastic has faded, so they need some more abberant headline, and our culture's perception of itself slides down thee scale another notch.
In reality, there are a lot of decent folks out there, doing their best, and the 'if it bleeds-it leads' headline fodder is the exception, not the rule. But some people do not realize this and will view the world around them with what has become a culturally acceptable level of paranoia, as others will play into that, drawn by the revenues to be made from 'protecting' the masses, or the empowerment of intimidation and lure of easy lucre.
I detected clear undertones of anti-gun sentiment in the tone of article, a media favorite because an unarmed populace is easily intimidated.
One of the things the media have changed (for the worse) is the perception that each generation is somehow a new wave of aliens, rather than our offspring, or our offspring's offspring. Beyond the trimmings, people are people, as they have always been, and human nature applies. Kids push the envelope, try outrageous modes of dress, tatoos, piercings (used to be just ears), different buzzwords and ways to talk, fast cars, a beer, cigarettes, etc. Welcome to Growing Up and Figuring Out Your Place in the World (and the local pecking order) 101. Hopefully, you will survive. Sorry, forget the Leave-it-to-Beaver reruns, the rules have changed....
Sorry about the rant, I just needed to say that.
If us ol' geezers want to push that pendulum back, it is time to start befriending and mentoring the younger generation, not viewing them with unwarranted derision and suspicion.
Unfortunately, it seems that someone, somewhere will have to pay the price for another generation of kids learning what not to do. I am neither condeming nor exonerating the homeowner (that is for the court to decide), just saying that in some instances actions have unforseen and tragic consequences.
It seems that every year someone was hurt or killed where and when I grew up, sometimes by the most innocuous acts. The rest of us learned that there are things we should not do as older and nearly adult people. As painful as this is, I hope the good that comes out of it is that people think ahead and realize when their actions could lead to calamity, and proceed accordingly. Note I am speaking of Adults as well as Teenagers. It only takes a few moments of stupidity to have a tragedy, or, like my friend's mom used to say "It is always fun until someone gets their eye put out."
I am sorry you lost your friend, and for the grief it has brought you all. I am sure Mr Levin is suffering in his own personal Hell as well.
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