by Patrick H. Moore
Three mindless Oklahoma teenage boys — ages 15, 16 and 17 — shocked Duncan, Oklahoma, a normally quiet community of 25,000 in southern Oklahoma not far from the Texas border, by randomly shooting and killing Christopher Lane, a popular Australian baseball player studying at East Central University (ECU). This was yet another Facebook murder, only this time — unlike in the case of Derek Medina — the “village idiots” advertised the murder in advance by posting on the Facebook page of one of the alleged killers:
‘‘Bang. Two drops in two hours.”
Fortunately, the boys were apprehended prior to gunning down their second intended victim.
According to Watoday.com.au, an Australian online publication, the U.S. authorities have stated that the boys were on a ‘‘killing spree’’.
Duncan police chief Danny Ford said that the accused killers drove to a second house to murder a second unrelated victim just hours after shooting Lane in the back and leaving him to die on the side of a road.
“I think they were on a killing spree. We would have had more bodies that night if we didn’t get them. They wanted to be Billy Bob Badasses.”
Chief Ford stated that Lane, who grew up in Melbourne on Australia’s southern coast, was murdered on Friday afternoon when he left his girlfriend, Sarah Harper’s, house and went for a jog along Country Club Road in an upscale section of town.
To say he was in the wrong place at the wrong time is an understatement. The three boys, trolling in a black car with a white sticker on the driver’s windshield, spotted him randomly.
‘‘They followed him,’’ Chief Ford said. ‘‘They came up from behind, shot him in the back with a small calibre hand gun and sped off.’’
Witnesses saw Lane stumble and fall to his knees, then drag himself to the side of the road. A neighbor woman tried CPR while another woman driving by stopped and called 911. Police and paramedics were at the scene within minutes and transported Lane to a nearby hospital. It was too late; he was pronounced dead within the hour.
The big break came four hours later when a terrified parent phoned in the message that several juveniles were coming over “to kill their son’’. The police raced over and apprehended the three teenagers in the black car in a church car parking lot near the the second intended victim’s house.
The boys were arrested without incident, with one allegedly confessing that they had murdered Lane. According to Chief Ford, the other two boys stone-walled it but the one confession combined with the witness statements led law enforcement to search the car. The turned up a shotgun but the murder weapon has yet to be found. They did find ammunition for the handgun hidden in a fuse box under the hood of the car. In addition, surveillance footage taken minutes after Lane was shot, allegedly showed the boys hiding a weapon in the air cleaner.
In a bizarre turn of event, after shooting Lane and prior to their arrest,one of the boys kept an appointment with juvenile authorities for a previous brush with the law.
Chief Ford stated that there is no evidence linking the boys to drugs or gang activity.
‘‘I know everybody thinks there has to be a reason, but I’ve been in this business for 30 years and there doesn’t have to be a reason with these kids. It is a sad, sad thing what happened with that young man.’’
At the time of the shooting, Lane and his girlfriend — who had been together for four years — had only been back in the US for three days after visiting his family in Australia.
A few hours after Lane’s death, Sarah Harper posted a tribute of Facebook saying she had ‘‘amazing memories’’ and cherished a ‘‘last adventure together.’’
‘‘I love you so much babe. From 2009 until forever you will always be mine and in a very special and protected place in my heart,” she wrote poetically.
Lanes friends and teammates have begun changing their profile pictures on Facebook to images of Lane. One friend wrote that he had been a generous friend and ‘‘brother’’ to his ECU teammates.
‘‘I don’t think any of us know how or what we are supposed to feel right now about one of our best men Christopher Lane but I do know that we were extremely blessed to have him sent across the world and into each of our lives,” Marshall Veal wrote.
‘‘He brought a light to each of us and will be greatly missed. Laney would have done anything in the world for all of us and we would do the same, he was a best friend, teammate, and most of all a Brother.’’
A former Australian teammate wrote:
‘‘You are one of the most genuine blokes I’ve ever had the privilege to get to know.’’
The ECU athletics director, Dr. Jeff Williams wrote:
”The ECU family is saddened to hear about this tragedy. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Lane family and friends. We will do everything possible to support his family and teammates during this sad time.’’
Essendon Baseball Club, Lane’s Australian club also paid tribute to him.
”Essendon Baseball Club is deeply saddened by the passing of Christopher Lane. Chris was a truly talented and highly respected young man whose friendship was valued by all who had the good fortune to know him. His loss is felt by each and every member of the Essendon family and our thoughts and prayers are with the Lane family during this incredibly difficult time.”
Lane’s body is expected to be flown back to Australia later this week.
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The fate of the “three idiot boys” will very likely depend on whether they are tried as adults or juveniles. If it is the former, they are likely to face premeditated first degree murder charges. If the latter, they would presumably be held in juvenile detention until they turn 21.
One wonders if this murder would have even happened were it not for Facebook and social media. The boys appear to have been titillated by the thought of titillating their Facebook friends by broadcasting their intended crime(s) in advance. It’s easy to imagine them driving around after killing Lane congratulating each other and fantasizing about how impressed everyone was going to be, particularly after they “sealed the deal” with murder #2.
It will be interesting to see if this Facebook killing spawns subsequent similar bravado killings.
Update:
In March of this year, an Oklahoma judge ruled Wednesday that two teenagers charged with first-degree murder must face a trial in the shooting death of an Australian baseball player.
Prosecutors say a third suspect will testify against them.
Police and prosecutors say the boys targeted Christopher Lane, 22, last August as a way to overcome a boring summer afternoon. Chancey Luna, 16, and Michael Dewayne Jones, 18, were ordered to stand trial, while prosecutors said James Francis Edwards Jr., 16, will testify against them and be charged with a lesser crime.