TheClash
03-04-2008, 08:44 AM
Winnipeg Free Press
Air-rifle shot killed Cody, police reveal
Gun stolen from West End garage; youth, 17, faces negligence charge
By: James Turner
Updated: March 2, 2008 at 12:40 AM CST
A loaded pellet rifle stolen from a Home Street garage was the weapon that killed 13-year-old Cody Shuya last Saturday, police said yesterday.
Police came forward with more details of their investigation into the boy's death and announced that an arrest had been made in what they call "a tragic incident."
On the morning Cody was shot, police allege he and a 17-year-old youth broke into a garage and stole the pellet rifle. While passing the gun between them, it fired and struck Cody high in the upper body, police say.
They wouldn't say exactly where the pellet struck him, but said it was in an area "above the shoulders" which injured him severely.
"Pellet guns can be as dangerous as a regular firearm can," said police spokeswoman Const. Jacqueline Chaput.
Police said there's no evidence there was a struggle between the two for control of the weapon.
The 17-year-old then fled the area, leaving Cody bleeding in the Home Street back lane where police found him after a neighbour called 911.
Police arrested a youth Friday, four days after Cody died in hospital from the gunshot, and two days after his funeral. He's charged with criminal negligence causing death and break and enter. Police said the shooting didn't appear deliberate, but refused to call it accidental.
The youth was also charged with violating his probation. He is now in the Manitoba Youth Centre and is to appear in court this week.
"Now we'll find out exactly what went on and why my son was shot," said Cody's father, James Grant, 32. He recalled going on long walks with his son and said the boy had no gang connections.
Grant said he had no idea what Cody and the other youth were doing in that back lane that morning, but said whatever they were up to, his son's behaviour was that of a normal teenager.
"My son was not a bad person at all. He was your typical 13-year-old boy," Grant said, adding that all kids Cody's age get into trouble sometimes.
"You see a sign saying don't go somewhere, and of course you're going to check it out," he said.
Grant said if the 17-year-old now charged in the shooting is found guilty, he'd like him to do jail time.
"He took the life of an innocent person. He should face the consequences," he said.
In a recent interview, Cody's grandmother, Shelly Grant, echoed the view that Cody was a typical teen in pretty much every way.
He played pranks, liked junk food and being outdoors hanging out with his friends, she said.
The lanky boy had two younger brothers and a half-sister that he loved, Grant said.
He was born and raised in the city and attended area schools.
It's believed the 17-year-old youth dumped the gun between two garages on Home Street as he fled. Witnesses described the recovered gun as a long-barreled rifle with a scope on top.
As part of the investigation, police will test the gun recovered at the scene. They have yet to confirm if it was the one that caused Cody's death.
Chaput said there's no indication the gun was stored improperly.
"There's no real provisions for storing pellet guns," she said.
However, Chaput did urge people to use care in how any firearms are stored.
"They should be hidden. They should be stored unloaded," she said.
It's the third incident in just more than a month involving teens using pellet guns with tragic or near-tragic outcomes.
On Jan. 27, police were shot at on Logan Avenue by a 17-year-old brandishing an air rifle. The incident caused a prolonged standoff in the freezing cold and the use of the heavily armed SWAT team to clear the area. The youth was charged with a number of firearms offences.
On Feb. 20, police were called to Nelson McIntyre Collegiate on St. Mary's Road in response to reports that a student had brought an air gun to school and was overheard saying he wanted to harm another student.
The school went into immediate lockdown for more than an hour. A 15-year-old boy was arrested off the school grounds and charged with possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose and uttering threats.
Air-rifle shot killed Cody, police reveal
Gun stolen from West End garage; youth, 17, faces negligence charge
By: James Turner
Updated: March 2, 2008 at 12:40 AM CST
A loaded pellet rifle stolen from a Home Street garage was the weapon that killed 13-year-old Cody Shuya last Saturday, police said yesterday.
Police came forward with more details of their investigation into the boy's death and announced that an arrest had been made in what they call "a tragic incident."
On the morning Cody was shot, police allege he and a 17-year-old youth broke into a garage and stole the pellet rifle. While passing the gun between them, it fired and struck Cody high in the upper body, police say.
They wouldn't say exactly where the pellet struck him, but said it was in an area "above the shoulders" which injured him severely.
"Pellet guns can be as dangerous as a regular firearm can," said police spokeswoman Const. Jacqueline Chaput.
Police said there's no evidence there was a struggle between the two for control of the weapon.
The 17-year-old then fled the area, leaving Cody bleeding in the Home Street back lane where police found him after a neighbour called 911.
Police arrested a youth Friday, four days after Cody died in hospital from the gunshot, and two days after his funeral. He's charged with criminal negligence causing death and break and enter. Police said the shooting didn't appear deliberate, but refused to call it accidental.
The youth was also charged with violating his probation. He is now in the Manitoba Youth Centre and is to appear in court this week.
"Now we'll find out exactly what went on and why my son was shot," said Cody's father, James Grant, 32. He recalled going on long walks with his son and said the boy had no gang connections.
Grant said he had no idea what Cody and the other youth were doing in that back lane that morning, but said whatever they were up to, his son's behaviour was that of a normal teenager.
"My son was not a bad person at all. He was your typical 13-year-old boy," Grant said, adding that all kids Cody's age get into trouble sometimes.
"You see a sign saying don't go somewhere, and of course you're going to check it out," he said.
Grant said if the 17-year-old now charged in the shooting is found guilty, he'd like him to do jail time.
"He took the life of an innocent person. He should face the consequences," he said.
In a recent interview, Cody's grandmother, Shelly Grant, echoed the view that Cody was a typical teen in pretty much every way.
He played pranks, liked junk food and being outdoors hanging out with his friends, she said.
The lanky boy had two younger brothers and a half-sister that he loved, Grant said.
He was born and raised in the city and attended area schools.
It's believed the 17-year-old youth dumped the gun between two garages on Home Street as he fled. Witnesses described the recovered gun as a long-barreled rifle with a scope on top.
As part of the investigation, police will test the gun recovered at the scene. They have yet to confirm if it was the one that caused Cody's death.
Chaput said there's no indication the gun was stored improperly.
"There's no real provisions for storing pellet guns," she said.
However, Chaput did urge people to use care in how any firearms are stored.
"They should be hidden. They should be stored unloaded," she said.
It's the third incident in just more than a month involving teens using pellet guns with tragic or near-tragic outcomes.
On Jan. 27, police were shot at on Logan Avenue by a 17-year-old brandishing an air rifle. The incident caused a prolonged standoff in the freezing cold and the use of the heavily armed SWAT team to clear the area. The youth was charged with a number of firearms offences.
On Feb. 20, police were called to Nelson McIntyre Collegiate on St. Mary's Road in response to reports that a student had brought an air gun to school and was overheard saying he wanted to harm another student.
The school went into immediate lockdown for more than an hour. A 15-year-old boy was arrested off the school grounds and charged with possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose and uttering threats.