Teens' Actions 'Not a Prank. It's Second-Degree Murder'

Michigan teens have been charged after rocks thrown from highway overpass
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 24, 2017 2:35 AM CDT
Teens Charged With Murder After Rocks Thrown From Highway Overpass
Kenneth White.   (Genesee County Sheriff's Office)

Police in Michigan say prosecutors are "throwing the book" at five teenagers accused of throwing a rock from a highway overpass, killing a construction worker who was on his way home to his fiancee and their 5-year-old son. Kyle Anger, 17; Mark Sekelsky, 16; Mikadyn Payne, 16; Alexzander Miller, 15; and Trevor Gray, 15; were charged as adults with second-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and other offenses Monday, the Detroit News reports. Police say the teens threw at least 20 rocks from an I-75 overpass near Flint last Wednesday, damaging four other cars and killing 32-year-old Kenneth White when a 6-pound rock went through the windshield of the van he was riding in. Police say that after throwing the rocks, the teens had dinner at McDonald's.

Anger is being held in the county jail and the four younger teens are in a regional detention center. Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton says the charge is second-degree murder instead of first because he doesn't believe it was a deliberate attempt to take a life. "It was a willful and wanton act that resulted in somebody’s death," he says. "It's not a prank. It's second-degree murder," says Genesee County Sheriff Robert Pickell, per ABC 12. He says the teens, all Clio High School students, were arrested after a lot of "good old-fashioned police work." "At the end of the day, nobody wins," the sheriff says. "The young boys are charged as criminals, a young boy lost his father, and all the families are left grieving." A GoFundMe page to help White's family has raised more than $47,000. (More Michigan stories.)

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