Anthony
Super Moderator
Christopher Lane, 22, attending an Oklahoma college on a baseball scholarship was out for a jog shot when he was shot and killed.
Police Chief Danny Ford said the 16-year-old was with two other teenagers aged 15 and 17 when they killed Lane during a drive by shooting in the town of Duncan.
The victim was visiting his girlfriend and her family at the time of the incident. Police described the random act of violence by three "bored" teenagers who decided to kill someone for the fun of it. A 17-year-old in the group has given a detailed confession to police, but investigators haven’t found the firearm used in last week’s shooting, the chief said.
“They saw Christopher go by, and one of them said: ‘There’s our target,’†Ford said. “The boy who has talked to us said, ‘We were bored and didn’t have anything to do, so we decided to kill somebody.’â€
A woman called 911 and neighbors rushed to help Lane after they heard a gunshot and saw Lane stagger and collapse across the road.
“He was face down on the ground and he was shot in the back with a .22 revolver,†builder Richard Rhodes told reporters. “I had another lady stop and we tried CPR on him. And he passed away right here.â€
Sarah Harper, Lane's girlfriend, said that the two just came back to the United States from Australia only last week.
"He didn't deserve any of this," Harper told the reporters. "It's heartbreaking that it was such a random choice those guys made that drastically altered so many lives in the process."
A witness told police the suspect’s were in a black car that had a white sticker on the front left hand side of the driver's windscreen.
Several hours later, police received a call from a parent, telling them "Several juveniles are coming over to kill their son."
The chief told reporters that police detained the three boys near a vehicle and had found a dismantled shotgun from the car but that Lane had been killed with another gun that had not yet been found. He said police have had "problems" with two of the three juveniles previously. However he didn’t give out any details.
All three teens are facing the charge of first-degree murder, which carries a maximum sentence of the death penalty.
“They didn’t have a motive other than to make a name for themselvesâ€, Chief Ford said.
Lane attended East Central University in Ada, Oklahoma. He was entering his senior year, and last year he started 14 games at catcher.
“He was an absolute joy to coach,†baseball coach Dino Rosato said in a statement issued by the school. “Chris was an extremely well-respected teammate. He set a great example for all of his teammates, but more importantly for the younger players. He was a mature student athlete who his teammates could look to for advice and support.â€
Peter Lane, Christopher’s father said he was very proud of his son.
"He did all the things a kid should have done," Mr. Lane said. "He caused us some grief but he caused us so much joy. He achieved a lot for a 22-year-old. "He gave up a lot to follow his dream. He gave up 18th birthday parties to be at the Victorian Institute of Sport at 8am the next morning, ready to go. "He left his mark."
At Essendon Baseball field, where Lane played baseball, people placed flowers and a baseball on the home plate with a note: "A wonderful young man taken too soon," it read. "Why?"