A 15-year-old appears in court, accused in fatal shooting of Arlington High student
A 15-year-old suspect in the fatal shooting of an Arlington teen will remain in custody, a judge ruled Friday.
The suspect, whose name has not been made public because of his age, is accused of shooting Sam Reynolds, a 16-year-old Arlington High School student, outside an apartment complex Thursday afternoon.
Family told investigators they believe the shooting started because the victim had broken up a fight involving the suspect a few days ago, Arlington police said. Surveillance video which shows the shooting afforded investigators an opportunity to quickly identify and arrest the suspect, according to police.
During a juvenile detention hearing held on Friday, State District Judge Alex Kim said the suspect had been on probation stemming from an assault charge when he was 12.
“This is a community’s greatest fear,” Kim said. “I cannot let you go. Kids and guns don’t mix.”
The attorney representing the 15-year-old, Frank Adler, requested that the child be placed on suicide watch while in detention because his parents said he has talked about killing himself in the past.
Court officials discussed and anticipate that the case will be presented to a Tarrant County grand jury before preceding to trial.
Police identified the suspected shooter from surveillance video gathered at the scene and witness statements, according to court officials.
Witnesses told police that they saw the suspect, a skinny young man wearing a black hoodie, walking with Reynolds at the apartment complex where Reynolds lived in the 900 block of Benge Drive, near Arlington High School and the University of Texas at Arlington.
The suspect fired one shot toward the victim’s chest and then ran away, according to witnesses interviewed by police. Reynolds took a few steps and then fell to the ground.
A GoFundMe page has been started to help the family with funeral and other expenses. Reynolds was the only child of Madison Fletcher, according to the GoFundMe post.
“Madison and Sam had a stronger bond then you could ever imagine — it has always been the two of them, the best of friends,” the GoFundMe post reads.
The post describes Sam as an excellent student who loved playing soccer and going to the lake with his grandfather.
The family planned to hold a candlelight vigil outside the high school Friday evening.
Counselors were available to help grieving students at Arlington High on Friday, according to Arlington Independent School District Superintendent Marcelo Cavazos.
“The Arlington ISD asks that the community keep the family, classmates and teachers of this student in your thoughts,” Cavazos wrote on Facebook.
“This was an emotionally tough case for responding officers, investigators and medics,” Arlington Police Chief Will Johnson said in a statement. “We will direct our attention to how a young teen suspect accessed a firearm used in the offense.”
Anyone with information on the killing should call Arlington Police Detective Grant Gildon at 817-459-5691, police said. A person with a tip can remain anonymous by calling Tarrant County Crime Stoppers at 817-469-TIPS.
This story was originally published February 7, 2020 at 2:13 PM.
