A teenage girl has been shot after attending a high school basketball game with friends – and two of her classmates now face murder charges.
Christine Michael, 17, was driving with three other teenagers from the away game at Ripley High in Tennessee on Friday when the shooting began.
Michael, who had reportedly been a promising student with ambitions to become a model, was shot in the back and killed, while another passenger, an unnamed 13-year-old, was also hit and injured.
Two teenage suspects, 18-year-old Kevion Davis and 16-year-old Bishop Owens, have since been arrested and charged in the girl’s death. Cops have confirmed that both are students at Haywood High, where Michael was class president.
The suspected gunmen – both members of the school football team, according to police – are now charged with first-degree murder over Michael’s death, as well as triple attempted murder because four people were in the car during the shooting. The driver and other passengers were not injured.
Christine Michael, 17, was driving with three other teenagers from an away game at Ripley High in Tennessee on Friday when she was shot in the back and killed by at least two assailants
Two teenage suspects, 18-year-old Kevion Davis (pictured) and 16-year-old Bishop Owens, have since been arrested and charged in the girl’s death. Cops have confirmed that both are students at Haywood High, where Michael was class president
Residents are now mourning the loss of Michael, who reportedly had a 4.0 GPA and had no apparent links to her alleged killers – despite attending the same school.
Haywood County Police on Monday provided an update to their investigation, saying they have not yet determined a motive for the shooting and that Michael has no connection to what sparked the incident.
Speaking to reporters and concerned members of the community, Haywood County Sheriff Billy Garrett revealed that Michael had driven home with several unnamed teenagers who they believe were the gunmen’s real targets.
He said Michael was a “good boy” who got caught in the crossfire, adding a possible motive: “I can tell you it’s just a group of young people who were mad at each other for some reason.
“And the only way they knew, or the best way they knew, to solve the problem was to take up arms and solve it, and that’s not the answer,” Garrett said.
Two days earlier, Garrett’s department had tracked Davis down to his apartment at 668 Bell St in Brownsville and arrested the high school senior.
The teenage suspect – who announced in a social media post in December that he was “walking” to Arkansas State University – was then checked into the Haywood County Jail, where he was being held without bail on a first-degree murder charge .
Less than two hours later, Haywood County police officers arrived at the home of the other suspect, 16-year-old Owens, whom they arrested with the help of the Brownsville Police Department.
Haywood County Police on Monday provided an update to their investigation and said they have not yet determined a motive for the shooting, which is said to have been carried out by Michael’s fellow students at Haywood High School
Haywood County Sheriff Billy Garrett provided an update on her investigation Monday and said police believe Michael was not the intended target of the Haywood football players
Davis was arraigned Monday and his case turned over to the Attorney General. Online records show that Davis also plays basketball at Haywood High, although it’s unclear if he attended the Friday game that led to the shooting.
A Twitter account of Davis published a post in which he boasted of the attention he received from various college scouts over the course of his senior year.
“I swear it’s a blessing that different colleges are hitting me every day even though my season ended in week 4 with a cruciate ligament rupture,” the teen wrote on Dec. 3, 2022.
Owens, meanwhile, is being held by juvenile court officials because of his age and is facing the same charges as Davis. He too is being held without bond.
As police continue to investigate what sparked the shooting, local residents and relatives need to understand the tragedy and mourn the loss of a minor who likely had a bright future.
“You stole my child from me. you took my baby you robbed me I will never have grandchildren from her,” Tiffany Michael, the girl’s mother, told WREG on Monday.
Michael’s classmate said the victim – who had a 4.0 GPA – because of her dedication to school and her aspiration to one day pursue a career in modeling, helped her “start fighting for better grades.” “.
The victim’s classmate, Synandiaha Welch, said Michael helped her fight for better grades due to her involvement in school and her aspiration to one day pursue a career in modelling.
“She was smart. She had goals,” Welch told FOX 13. “She talked about how she wanted to be a model. She wanted to be CNA. She wanted to have a good life.’
Sheriff Garrett added: “The incident that took the life of Christine Michael Friday night will forever change the lives of many.
“Our heartfelt condolences go out to the Michael family at this extremely difficult time, and we want to support and lift them up as they process the pain this tragedy has caused their family.”
Despite the severity of the incident, classes at Haywood High resumed as usual on Monday.
Sheriff Garrett and Haywood County Schools Superintendent Amie Marsh assured students that those affected by the shooting would be counseled.
The statement described Michael as “a promising student who had tremendous plans for her future.”