Teen arrested for murder after shooting 13-year-old while victim was recording: SPPD
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - A 14-year-old faces murder charges after St. Petersburg police say he fired a gun inside a vehicle, hitting a 13-year-old who was recording the suspect at the time.
The backstory:
According to the St. Petersburg Police Department, Markus Carr, 14, and Jaden Hill, 13, were sitting in a vehicle in the 2400 block of 11th St. S shortly after 11 p.m. Saturday.
Hill was using a cellphone to record Carr, according to police, when Carr opened fire, hitting Hill.
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Police say Hill was rushed to the hospital, where he died.
Officers arrested Carr on a second-degree murder charge.
St. Pete police say Jaden Hill, 13, was shot and killed in the 2400 block of 11th St. S shortly after 11 p.m. Saturday.
What they're saying:
Police say this is a devastating situation for the families of both teens.
"And the fact is, one is no longer with us and the other is going to spend a substantial part of his life now behind bars in one way or another," SPPD Asst. Chief Mike Kovacsev said.
Investigators say Carr was pointing a gun while Hill recorded a video on his phone.
"When we downloaded the cell phone, there's video on it that showed the two of them kind of going back and forth and then, Markus Carr pulling out the firearm and shooting him once in the chest," Kovacsev said.
Kovacsev says there didn't seem to be any type of argument leading up to the shooting. Police say some of the original information they were given on scene didn't add up, but they eventually determined the shooting happened inside the car.
Dig deeper:
"This year has been a unique outlier over the past 12 months, compared to all the other years that I've seen," Kovacsev said. "I've never seen so many juveniles that have shot themselves accidentally, shot others accidentally and resulting in multiple deaths."
The incidents trace back to another crime that police keep battling in the city.
"Firearms in the wrong hands of juveniles, because gun owners, sometimes, will leave their firearms in places that they don't secure them," Kovacsev said. "And it's not to vilify anyone who is a lawful gun owner, it's just, secure them, put them away. Don't leave them in your cars."
Police say a lot of these deadly incidents involving teens and guns are preventable.
"And we're talking about a 13-year-old victim, a 14-year-old suspect," Kovacsev said. "It's mind-boggling to think that they would even understand how to properly use the firearms in the first place."
What's next:
In this case, police believe the gun Carr used was stolen, and they're working to confirm that.
"There's really no words of comfort you can be able say," Kovacsev said. "The fact is that we try to provide justice, we try provide a clear understanding of what happened. And hopefully, if people take it to heart, you won't have these incidents happening in the future."
Investigators say Carr has a history of auto theft and auto burglaries.
(NOTE: St. Petersburg police previously said the shooting was a drive-by, then clarified on Monday morning that it was not a drive-by.)
The Source: This story was written with information from the St. Petersburg Police Department.
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