Trending
Staff report
YOUNGSTOWN -- The teenager accused in the Tuesday afternoon shooting of a classmate has been identified as Devon Brown, 15, of East Auburndale Avenue on the South Side.
His name was included in a court complaint filed Friday in Mahoning County Juvenile Court. It also lists his charges as attempted murder, a first-degree felony, with a firearm specification and a forfeiture specification.
The victim, also, 15, is listed in the court filing only as J.D.
Devon pleaded denial, the juvenile version of not guilty, at his arraignment Friday afternoon before Juvenile Court Magistrate Karen Romano-Melone. according to court documents. He remains in the custody of the Juvenile Justice Center, according to Juvenile Court Administrator Joseph Nohra, and his next hearing has not yet been determined.
The shooting occurred in the parking lot of a plaza in the 2700 block of South Avenue, according to a Youngstown Police Department report.
The Youngstown City School District issued a press release Tuesday stating both boys are students at the Wilson Alternative School and Virtual Academy, which is a block east of the shooting location.
The identity of the teenager was determined through canvassing the neighborhoods around the incident and speaking with witnesses, "as well as maintaining a continual flow of dialogue with" the school district, a news release sent Thursday by the YPD states.
"The Youngstown Police Department wants to once again emphasize that violence, especially when committed by juveniles, has no place in our community and will be aggressively investigated and prosecuted," the release states. "This quick arrest was possible not just because of the work by law enforcement but because of the cooperation by those in the community who also wish to see an end to this cycle of violence."
The victim suffered non-life-threatening injuries in the shooting. It is not believed the gun was with Devon during school, as he passed through a metal detector, the district stated in its release earlier this week.