A 13-year-old Black teenager was shot and killed in Washington, D.C. by a man who told police he thought the minor was trying to break into a car.
According to Buzzfeed News, Karon Blake, 13, has been identified by police as the victim of the fatal shooting on Saturday (January 7). No suspects have been identified or arrested in connection with the shooting death, with police saying they are "currently working with the US Attorney’s Office to review the facts and circumstances for any potential criminal charges."
Police said the shooter was inside of his home on Saturday when he "heard noises and observed someone that appeared to be tampering with vehicles."
"The male resident went outside, armed with a registered firearm, to further investigate," according to police. He proceeded to shoot Blake who was later pronounced dead at a local hospital.
Police told the Washington Post that there is “no indication at this time” the boy was armed at the time of shooting. The only account of how the shooting unfolded on Saturday comes from the gunman himself.
DC Councilmember Christina Henderson condemned the shooting in a tweet on Monday (January 8).
"Property is not greater than life. Karon should be alive today," Henderson tweeted.
Blake, a sixth-grade student at Brookland Middle School, was a "quiet and inquisitive scholar who loved fashion and football," Kerry Richardson, the school's president, said in an email to parents, per FOX 5 DC.
"Although he loved his neighborhood, he loved Brookland MS (the faculty & his peers) and the structure it presented to him even more," Richardson wrote.
In a tweet on Saturday (January 7) DC Councilmember Zachary Parker called the shooting a "devastating tragedy," noting that he has "deep concerns about neighbors taking justice into their own hands."
"Our young people deserve long lives with the opportunity to dream big," Parker tweeted.
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