Youth charged in deadly school shooting

These school shootings are very unfortunate and I really wish there was a way to solve this problem. Why should high school students be worried about riff-raffs who don't go to school either harrasing them or assaulting them. It's really unfortunate.

I could turn this into an angle about metal detectors. I don't know if students these days still have to go thru metal detectors today, but way back when that's how I started my day. Really unfortunate because while I would disagree with it, I understand why they had to take that precaution. Because some thugs just couldn't leave their conflicts out in the streets.

In this case at Crane this only happened on school grounds after school. So it was not even inside the school. It's also unfortunate that CPS is making note of how many students have been killed or died. The only reason we hear this statistic is only because someone got assaulted.

Well here's some news from the Trib today...

A 15-year-old student was charged with first-degree murder Sunday in the fatal shooting a Crane Tech High School classmate shortly after school let out on the West Side on Friday.

DeVonte Smyth, of the 1100 block of West Washburne Avenue, was ordered held without bail and charged with one count of first degree murder in the death of Ruben Ivy, 18.

Ivy is the 18th Chicago public school student killed since school began in September.

Smyth, 15, was charged as an adult during a hearing at the Cook County courthouse, according to the state's attorney's office. Prosecutors described Smyth as a gang member. The Crane Tech sophomore has no criminal record, according to court records.

Smyth's family and friends declined to comment after the hearing Sunday.

Attorneys said Smyth and Ivy attended the same school, but did not know one another. On Friday, however, Ivy's family and friends described a long-running feud between the gunman and Ivy. They also disputed initial reports that the fight began over a hat.

The shooting occurred near the school in the 2200 block of West Jackson Boulevard about 3 p.m. on Friday, 10 minutes after the school day ended. Ivy was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 3:44, according to a report by the Cook County medical examiner's office.

A second student was beaten with a golf club during the melee. The 15-year-old student remained at Stroger Hospital on Sunday, according to Chicago police. No charges have been brought in the battery against him, Officer Laura Kubiak said.

Oh yeah Chicagoist has this to say about the usual calls for more gun control.

But are more gun laws really the answer? These shooting incidents are seemingly on the rise despite the Chicago handgun ban already in place. And it's probably not a real stretch to assume that most of the shooters don't possess FOID cards and didn't obtain the guns legally. Going after the method of violence instead of the root cause seems to make as much sense as banning baggies to reduce drug sales. The common denominator in many of these stories are gangs -- wouldn't money and effort be better spent on reducing gang-related activity, and helping to provide more opportunities for kids so they are not lured into gang life to begin with?

Most of us might feel better with gun control laws but that is very likely not the only solution. If nothing else it's the easiest solution. Too easy and perhaps ineffective. I will always say that it's better to go after the criminals that go after the guns and understand that responsible gun owners aren't the ones committing crimes. Still we might need to request that instead of gun-control perhaps there must be other solutions to be had to curb this unfortunate problem.