LARRY KING'S MURDER TAKES ON UGLY, SURREALISTIC TONE

Last Thursday, February 12th, was the one year anniversary of the tragic murder of 15 year old Lawrence "Larry" King in a Oxnard, CA classroom just as the school day was beginning.

Young King, who was openly gay, was shot twice in the back of the head in front of his entire class. Fellow eighth-grade student Brandon McInerney, who was 14 at the time, was arrested for the murder.

Over the past year, as the case has progressed, McInerney's lawyers have tried to portray him as the victim of Larry's harrassment and teasing. But multiple student accounts have shown just the opposite. McInerney was the one who was constantly harrassing King. King only started "teasing" McInerney as a defense against the relentless taunts. In fact, just before the shooting, McInerney even tried to enlist other students to help him "beat up" King. When that failed, McInerney instead decided to shoot King himself.

At first, McInerney's lawyers tried to portray him as an innocent, inexperienced 14 year old boy. But additional evidence has come out that not only shows that he was proficient with firearms and frequently went to firing ranges for target practice with his parents but there was also nazi and skinhead literature and a training video called “Shooting in Realistic Environments” found in his bedroom. This evidence, along with multiple accounts by other students of McInerney openly threatening to shoot King, prompted prosecutors to file their charges in adult court.

In response to the defendant's lawyer's objections to that filing, Deputy Dist. Atty. Maeve Fox said,

"It was an absolutely brutal crime, with premeditation and deliberation. "He was familiar with firearms and had fired that gun before. He knew what he was doing."

Now, the case has taken another ugly and surreal turn. According to a Box Turtle Bulletin story,

Lawrence King was adopted at age three by Gregory and Dawn King. According to the Kings, he never bonded with them. In November 2007 he was removed from their home and placed in a group home after he complained that Gregory King was physically abusive.

But none of that is stopping the Kings from seeking to be paid for their loss. And they are not above trashing Larry in order to get some cash.

To celebrate the one year anniversary of Larry’s death, Gregory and Dawn king have filed a wrongful death lawsuit assigning the blame for Larry’s murder on Larry himself and faulting everyone in sight. (SJ Merc)

This is beyond disgusting. Not only was Larry King victimized by McInerney but he was also apparently abused for years by his adoptive "family." And now, even in death, he is being used and abused by his ex-parents.

No matter how you look at this, it's a tragedy of monumental proportions all around.

It's a prime example of why in-school, gay-supportive and gay/straight alliances are so important. And why aggressive retraining of teachers and administrators is so vital to the health and well being of all students.