VENTURA, CA – According to the Los Angeles Times, the Oxnard teen who shot a gay classmate he believed was flirting with him has agreed to spend the next 21 years in prison, a plea deal that ends a case that drew national attention and ignited debate on how schools should deal with openly gay students.
Brandon McInerney, who was 14 when he pulled a gun out of his backpack and shot Larry King twice in the head in 2008, has already served nearly four years in jail and would be released by the time he is 38, under terms of the deal.
McInerney’s first trial ended with jurors split between convicting him of voluntary manslaughter and first-degree murder.
Several of the jurors have since spoken in favor of a plea bargain, in order to avoid a second trial.
During the first trial, prosecutors portrayed McInerney as a budding white supremacist who hated homosexuals and was enraged by King’s sexuality and aggressive flirtations.
The defense argued that McInerney was the product of a violent and dysfunctional home and had reached an emotional breaking point in response to King’s advances.
A national gay rights group later said prosecutors should have done the “just and merciful thing” and reached a plea deal in the case.
“Brandon McInerney killed Larry King and should go to jail for his crime,” said Eliza Byard, executive director of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network. “However, the first trial subjected everyone – especially Larry and Brandon’s peers – to a painful spectacle that accomplished nothing.”
At trial, several teachers testified that King had become increasingly bold in his behavior in the weeks before the shooting.
One of the teachers, Jill Eckman, demanded that administrators do something about rising tensions but was told to teach tolerance for King’s gender expression.
