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The jury didn't deliberate for more than half an hour, but in that time, a 15-year-old boy was convicted in the beating death of 16-year-old honor student Derrion Albert.
The boy was convicted of first-degree murder when it was determined that he laid a punch to the face of Albert as he tried to stand up. The jury decided that the punch played a significant role in Albert's death.
"I am pleased. Justice was served," Norman Golliday, Albert's grandfather, told the Associated Press. "The facts were there from the start, they stared you right in the face. The jury saw that."
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The teen's lawyer, Richard Kloak, admitted that his client punched Albert but said that the crime was not as serious as the conviction.
"I wish the jury had been given a third option. They had to decide [between] two choices, guilty or not guilty," he said. "I thought if I could give them a lesser crime that was proportionate to what he had done, it would be more palatable, but I didn't get to do that."
After the boy is sentenced on January 18th, he may end up spending the rest of his adolescence in prison. The greater challenge for him is that if he violates the terms of his sentence, he could get another 20 to 60 years behind bars.
Five teens have been charged in the murder, and the other four are being tried as adults. The next trial is set to occur on January 7th. Important testimony in the trial came from a pathologist who said that the punch contributed to Albert's death. The boy reportedly hit Albert so hard that he couldn't even use his hands to break his fall.
Roughly two dozen students left Fenger High School, after the Chicago Public School system gave them the option to transfer. Police have also created a database that tracks violent incidents in the school system, which has also pursued initiatives related to student safety as well as conflict resolution.
I become saddened every time I am asked to write about the death of Derrion Albert. I am not only sad for Derrion and his family, I am also sad for the boys on trial. Nearly every boy, at some point during his teenage life, gets in to a fight. The idea that this child could get 20 to 60 years in prison for throwing a punch is certainly problematic.
I can't imagine serving that much time in prison for a punch I might have thrown at the age of 15. The criminal justice system, as it pertains to African-American males, is in serious need of significant repair.
With that said, there is obviously the greater tragedy that a young boy is dead. Stronger adult intervention could have protected this young man from the bullying he might have faced at school.
Additionally, high-teen unemployment rates, in conjunction with very few after-school activities, served as significant contributors to Derrion Albert's death. By not providing healthy outlets for these boys to express the anger within their souls, we all played a role in killing Derrion Albert. This case represents one of a million tragedies in the experience of black males in America.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action Resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.
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