Trial starts today in death of DeSoto boy
Posted on 05/13/2002 8:08:47 AM PDT by MeekOneGOP
Trial starts today in death of DeSoto boy
Police say shooting of playmate not accident
05/13/2002
A 13-year-old DeSoto boy charged with killing his best friend doesn't deny the shooting occurred but says he and his friend were acting out video games when the gun went off, the boy's attorney said.
The boy's trial in juvenile court begins Monday, and much of the defense's argument will center on the boys' activities March 5 when they skipped school at DeSoto East Junior High.
Police say the shooting of Jonathan Hogan, 13, was no accident because evidence shows the gun was placed against his skin when it fired.
The boy's attorney, Ray Jackson, said his client got his mother's gun after playing the video games. Playing with the gun was an extension of the games, and the weapon accidentally fired.
"Video games are relevant as to what was going on in the kids' minds and why the gun was brought out in the first place," Mr. Jackson said. "The games had guns in them."
Dr. Kathy Giuffre, a Colorado College sociology professor, who teaches courses on the media and culture, said that although anecdotal evidence suggests some link between media violence and violent behavior in children, the true link will never be known because it's unethical to study. To obtain scientific evidence, children would have to watch violence and then be observed.
"Children do mimic what they see on television and in video games," she said. "But blaming one aspect of society, such as the media, for a social tragedy doesn't do any good at preventing it from happening again because so many factors are at work."
Police initially charged the boy with manslaughter but raised the charge to juvenile murder when the autopsy revealed the .25-caliber pistol was pressed to his skin for at least one of the shots. The first shot hit his chest, the second his head. Mr. Jackson declined to comment about the circumstances of the shooting. His client is not being named because of his age.
Police seized numerous video games from the house, including World's Scariest Police Chases, according to documents. In that game, the player is a police officer shooting at suspects in a car. Eleven games taken from the home are not named in a search-warrant return.
A search-warrant affidavit says DeSoto police were searching for any "video game cartridges and video game players as described by suspect," along with journals and bullet fragments.
Jonathan's father, Izear Hogan, and police say some time might have passed between the time the boys were playing video games and the shooting, which occurred about 2 p.m.
"They were playing basketball," Mr. Hogan said. "A lady said she saw them playing basketball, and then five minutes later, the ambulance came. They couldn't have been playing video games if the were playing basketball."
Police found no evidence of recent animosity between the boys. They were expelled in November for fighting when the boy made a comment about Jonathan's deceased mother. But police said they don't believe the shooting was connected to the fight.
"To me, it seemed like a normal friendship until this point [the shooting]," said DeSoto police Detective Todd Gibson, who investigated the slaying. He added that he did not think the boy had been truthful during the investigation.
School records obtained in court files show the boys were frequently in trouble at school and were often sent to the principal's office.
The boys shared no classes, but both took a computer class from Dale Price, who frequently referred them to the principal's office for fighting. Mr. Price declined to comment. Several other school officials did not return phone calls.
Referrals to the principal's office throughout the school year showed the boy to be "aggressive, extremely inappropriate, disrespectful and mocking" when teachers stopped arguments or fights at school, according to a referral.
School records also show Jonathan was disrespectful to teachers and students.
Mr. Hogan has filed a civil suit against the boy's mother alleging that she left the loaded weapon on a bedside table where it was accessible to children. In the lawsuit, the shooting is called an accident.
In a response, the mother, who was not home at the time of the shooting, denied the allegations. She declined to comment through Mr. Jackson.
Mr. Hogan said recently that he's ready for the trial to begin because many of his questions about the case have gone unanswered.
"I don't know what to think," he said. "I want to find out what happened. Nobody knows but that boy."
E-mail: jemily@dallasnews.com
Police initially charged the boy with manslaughter but raised the charge to juvenile murder when the autopsy revealed the .25-caliber pistol was pressed to his skin for at least one of the shots. The first shot hit his chest, the second his head. Mr. Jackson declined to comment about the circumstances of the shooting. His client is not being named because of his age.
Am I the only one that wonders how anyone, even a 13 year old boy,
could claim shooting a person in the chest AND the head is an ACCIDENT?
This should be an interesting trial.......
FMCDH!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.