Family demands justice for 17-year-old boy who died after being shot in the eye by BB gun

TAMPA, Fla. - The mother of a young boy killed last week by a BB gun is speaking to FOX 13 for the first time, calling for justice for her son. 

”He was just very respectful humble, loving,” Camisha Denny said of her son, 17-year-old Ivan Johnson. 

Ivan died Tuesday, three days after being shot in the eye by a Daisy 800-style BB gun. Police say he was in a car with a still-unnamed adult male friend and that man’s 8-year-old son and 10-year-old stepson, boys he apparently knew from playing football. 

When the driver got out to use the ATM at the Bank of America near the Westshore Mall, police say the 8-year-old in the back seat accidentally shot Ivan through the eye. His family says the BB severed his brain stem. 

"This wasn’t an accident, I feel like the parent who was in the car needs to be held responsible,” said Denny. “There's negligence. Why do you have a BB gun in the car?”

Investigators haven't ruled out any charges, saying they'll work with the state attorney. The case is considered active. 

”Step up, be a man," Ivan's stepfather Solomon Denny said. "If it’s an accident as you said it’s an accident, approach us and let us know that you are sorry for what you did."

Meanwhile, a fundraiser has been started to help with funeral costs. 

”Ivan was someone that could light up a room everywhere he went, he was so funny,” said Alexa Campbell, who says she had been close with Ivan since the 6th grade. “I would've never thought this would've happened to him of all people."

Ivan’s family has donated his organs, something they said he would’ve wanted.