Derrion Albert, honors student, beating death caught on videotape

[momlove]

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Three teenagers have been charged with first-degree murder in the death of a 16-year-old boy whose beating was captured on amateur video. Nineteen-year-old Silvanus Shannon, 16-year-old Eric Carson and 18-year-old Eugene Riley were charged as adults with first degree felony murder, said Tandra Simonton, spokesperson for the Cook County States Attorney. They were all held without bond.</p>

<p>They are charged in the death of Derrion Albert, an honors student who was beaten to death last Thursday. An amateur videotape of the beating has been broadcast nationally.

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<p>I just saw this reported on the national news. Tragic. He was an honors student and was working hard and looking forward to college. His mom was inconsolable, describing how she tried to keep him safe. He was caught up in this random violence; the teenagers acted with such rage and anger. What a shame. What a tragic, terrible shame for this young man and his family.</p>

[MommaJ]

<p>This is a horrible tragedy. However I have to say that I am never comfortable when a victim is described, as this one has been described in every news report, as an “honors student”. I assume the purpose of the characterization is to ally any assumption that he was a gang member, but I hate the implication that his life was more worthy, or his death more regrettable, because he had good grades in school. He was an innocent teenage boy, someone’s child, living in a horribly dangerous environment. It’s not important whether he was bright or average or slow.</p>

[speihei]

<p>Chicago gets more dangerous by the day. Looking at the video (watch it if you can take it) it appears every person there could have run away - victims and assailants.</p>

[toledo]

<p>There was another teen shooting last spring in my son’s college city. They first reported it in a similar fashion…great kid, never in trouble, wrong place at the wrong time, blah, blah, blah. Turns out he was a gang member and was accidently shot by a fellow gang member during a robbery. Could it be that parents just don’t know when thier kids are in gangs??</p>

[starbright]

<p>Why is that video circulating and why are people watching it? The act itself is horrific and speaks volumes about things wrong in our society: the video adds yet another level of concern.</p>

[Consolation]

<p>THe video shows a chaotic scene with a bunch of kids who are seem to be caught up in the melee accidentally. The male who keeps making jocular remarks throughout sounds like an <em>&&%0</em>!of the first order.</p>

[speihei]

<p>Airing the video helps to identify and arrest the perpetrators.</p>

[jonri]

<p>The family agreed that the video could be shown in the hope that someone who saw it could identify the participants–and apparently that’s exactly what happened.</p>

[starbright]

<p>^Fair enough but it would seem it would serve its purpose being shown to the neighborhood or local news channel, not the whole country.</p>

[Write]

<p>I have wondered if the person taping the scene called the police first. It didn’t appear that way. I could have missed something.</p>