Brandon McInerney

Brandon McInerney is a 17-year-old who pleaded guilty to second degree murder, voluntary manslaughter, and use of a gun and sentenced to 21 years for the shooting death of Lawrence "Larry" Fobes King, age 15. McInerney, who was 14 at the time of the murder, shot King twice with a .22-caliber gun at point-blank range[1] in the back of the head.[2]

At his trial, he was accused of committing a hate crime in connection with his murder of the older gay student, after the older student "had been dressing in women's accessories and wearing makeup, and was flirting aggressively with male students on campus who did not want the attention"[1] at a public school in Oxnard, California. The defense portrayed McInerney as a "bright but abused boy" and "appeared to reach out for jury sympathy by calling several of McInerney’s relatives to the stand to testify to the abuse the young boy suffered at the hands of his drug-abuser father."[2]

After McInerney's much-publicized jury trial, six jurors stated that all 12 jurors rejected the politically driven claim of prosecutors that he had committed a hate crime.[3] The trial resulted in a hung jury, and he later pleaded guilty to the reduced charges. and a shorter prison sentence. The mainstream media, however, continued to falsely portray the murder as a hate crime, failing to include the jurors' opinion.

After the mistrial, and after McInerney agreed to a plea bargain, Dawn King, the mother of the victim:[1]

“  |  revealed for the first time Monday that she had contacted school officials four days before the shooting in an effort to solicit their cooperation in toning down her son's behavior. ... She said she was told that her son had a civil right to explore his sexual identity.  |  ”

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Lawrence King had been removed by authorities from his home two months before he was murdered, due to domestic issues.[1]

## References[edit]

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Brandon McInerney gets 21 years: School faulted in gay teen slaying Catherine Saillant, L.A. Now blog at latimes.com, November 23, 2011.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Jury unable to reach verdict in killing of gay student Larry King Catherine Saillant, L.A. Now blog at latimes.com, September 1, 2011, retrieved November 23, 2011
3. ↑ https://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/video/execution-style-killing-classroom-14669728