Lawyer blames school in shooting of gay Oxnard student

By Catherine Saillant The Los Angeles Times

As 14-year-old Brandon McInerney prepares to be arraigned today in the slaying of 15-year-old Lawrence "Larry" King at E.O. Green Junior High School in Oxnard, his lawyer is advancing a defense that at least partly blames school officials for the tragedy.

Educators should have moved aggressively to quell rising tensions between the two boys, which began when King openly flirted with McInerney, said Deputy Public Defender William Quest.

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Lawrence King tragedy rings on (and that's a good thing)

As most know, 15-year-old Lawrence King was murdered at school on February 12, 2008 by a 14 year old fellow student.

Vigils in memory of Lawrence King, calling for an end to violence and harassment directed at LGBT people in schools, are being organized in communities across the country.

Click here to find a vigil in your area, or fill out the form to list a remembrance event in your community.

The more events we organize, the louder our collective voice.

Please help make sure that what happened to Lawrence never happens again.

1,000 march in Oxnard in tribute to slain teen

A march organized by students focuses on tolerance in the wake of the fatal shooting of an openly gay boy.

The Goths in their black T-shirts were there. So were the punks with fluorescent hair and multiple piercings.

There were even a few adolescent boys carrying skateboards among the nearly 1,000 Oxnard youth and other supporters who turned out Saturday for a hastily organized peace march to pay tribute to Lawrence King, 15, the Oxnard student shot to death in a classroom last week.

There were no bullhorns, no speeches and no politicians. Just a mass of mostly adolescents wearing bright clothing, carrying signs and singing John Lennon's "Imagine" and "Give Peace a Chance."

King, an eighth-grader at E.O. Green Junior High School in south Oxnard, had revealed he was gay this school year. In recent weeks, he had begun accessorizing his school uniform with feminine items and was often teased by other students, several of his classmates said.

Jeremiah, another student and friend of the victim, said King had recently told the 14-year-old boy who is alleged to have shot him that he had a crush on him.

"I see no point in shooting someone for telling them that you like them," said Jeremiah, who didn't want to give his last name.

Connor Sipes, 13, showed up with two of his buddies. They attend a different middle school, Connor said, but learned about the march through a posting on MySpace.

Connor wore a headband and a gold peace sign around his neck as the three boys walked the two miles from the school to the city park. He participated because what happened to King "wasn't right," he said. "It will be a better future if we are more tolerant."

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