In 2008, Brandon McInerney brought his .22 caliber revolver to school and murdered his openly gay classmate, Larry King. Three years later, after a mistrial and a deadlocked jury, the 17-year-old has pleaded guilty to second degree murder. Under the terms of his plea bargain he is to be incarcerated until he is 38-years old.

McInerney was a boy with a ruffled past. He come from a shaky household. His alcoholic father and his mother, once arrested on drug charges, were the least qualified people to raise a child. As if McInerney didn’t have it bad enough, he was forced to endure physical and emotional abuse at the hands of his father.

The victim in this case, Larry King, was more or less the same as his attacker. King had also come from a household with domestic abuse. Such was the case that he had to be taken out of his household and placed in a children’s shelter.

So why did these two boys, who seemed to come from a similar background, end up getting into a conflict?

It was because King openly admitted to being a homosexual.

King would come to school dressed in woman’s attire, decorated in make-up, and, at times, drenched in woman’s perfume. He would flirt with some of his male classmates on campus by saying things such as “Baby, I love you.” One of those classmates was McInerney.

Tired of being harassed he brought his armed weapon to school; having the intention of murdering King. He entered the computer lab and shot King in the back of the head. Once King dropped to the ground, McInerney proceeded to shoot the victim for the final time. The second shot was as lethal as the first one.

The then 14-year-old fled from the crime scene, later being captured by police. His first trial ended up being declared a mistrial. Two years later he pleaded guilty of his heinous and barbaric actions.

McInerney’s defense lawyers claim that his actions were in reaction to King wanting to change his name to “Latisha.” In all honesty, this has to be one of the most idiotic rebuttals that I’ve ever heard. To say that a teenage boys just snaps and turns into a killing monster is like saying that with a little practice a nun can become a street walker. Especially since McInerney brought his gun to school with him that day. He wasn’t carrying that weapon for fun. He came with the intention to cause pain, to release his frustration, to kill King.

I had learned about this case in English when I was a high school freshman. I remember thinking how monstrous this teenager was and how ignorant their school was for not addressing the problem.

The hate that McInerney had for King must have been obvious. And if it wasn’t, then the fact that McInerney was telling everyone that he was going to kill King should have sufficed. While administrators claimed that no faculty member had said anything on the matter, English teacher Dawn Boldrin of E.O. Green Junior High School stated that “It was reported, more than once, by more than one person.”

While many can blame the entire situation on the administration, the school didn’t pulled the trigger. The school might not have done everything in its power to protect King, but that doesn’t mean that the lack of responsiveness should give administration more blame than the man who actually committed the homicide.

From where I see it, the only person who can truly be blamed is McInerney. He was the one who took a child away from his parents. He was the one who decided to take a life away that wasn’t his. He was the one who came to school with the intention to kill. He was lucky to have received that 21-year life term. He would have received much more if I were the judge in that case. 

However, I must admit that if it wasn’t for Larry Kings parading his homosexuality none of this would have happened in the first place. Yes, the boy has a right to parade what he’s proud in. But the plain fact is that he was pushing his luck. Was King in the wrong for pushing his boundaries with McInerney? Yes. Should he have refrained from hitting on Brandon? Absolutely. King must have seen or heard of the hate that McInerney had for him. That alone should have been a big enough clue to stop. But, for reasons that we will never know, he didn’t.

Regardless of the situation, nothing justifies taking away someone else’s life. I hope that McInerney has some remorse for what he was done. He has not only taken away a child from his parents, but he has also traumatized the children who witnessed the ruthless murder. And if he doesn’t feel any remorse now, I hope he will after his 21 years in jail.