2 charged in teen's death over PSP robbery

[Vampiriclayer]

Two suspects have been arrested in the case of a Miramar teen who was killed after he was attacked over his hand-held game.

Walking from the library during Christmas vacation, James Felton-Maitland, 17, was fatally attacked by two teens bent on stealing his Sony PlayStation Portable, Miami-Dade police say.

Cause of death: Escaping his attackers' blows, James ran into traffic and was hit by a truck.

Authorities said Monday they have arrested Jamila ''Jam'' Brown, 19, and Keith Lebrone Goa, 17, on charges of second-degree felony murder and strong-arm robbery.

Under state law, someone who commits a violent felony that ends in a death can be charged with murder.

James' death has left his family grasping for answers.

''I looked forward to driving him to graduation one day. Maybe having a family, and grandchildren. And all that was snatched away from me,'' said his mother, Janet Maitland. ``I would have bought those kids a PSP if they wanted it.''

James, of Miramar, exuded teenage energy: He skateboarded, fished, and took tae kwon do classes.

He was also an avid animal fan. His pet bearded dragon was named Garra. He called his green-yellow-and-red parrot Perky. James was devastated at the death of television personality Steve ''Crocodile Hunter'' Irwin.

James wanted to attend Florida A&M University and one day study wildlife in Australia, his mother said.

''He looked forward to residing with some of the most ferocious animals in the world. He loved reptiles,'' Janet Maitland said.

A junior at Arlington Windsor Academy of Miami, 16151 NW 57th Ave., James helped produce the morning announcements. His task was to choose the daily vocabulary word for the school's 35 students.

''His death was very devastating to the school. We were all very close, like a family,'' said principal Annette Bly, who hopes to name the science lab in his honor.

James was attacked Dec. 27.

He had gone to North Dade Regional Library, 2455 NW 183rd St., to ''look at animal books and go on the Internet,'' his mother said.

POLICE ACCOUNT

As he walked out about 6 p.m., Brown and Goa were ''loitering on the library grounds and saw the victim and decided to rob him of his PSP,'' Miami-Dade Detective Elvey Melagarejo wrote in his arrest report.

In the portable video game system: a Star Wars video game.

They knocked James to the ground and ''beat him while attempting to take custody of the PSP,'' the arrest report said. Still clutching the PSP, James escaped his attackers. Brown and Goa gave chase, police said.

As James crossed Northwest 183rd Street, a truck slammed into him. He sustained ''severe head trauma,'' police said.

He died Jan. 5 at Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood.

''He was my best friend and he was my shadow. I miss him and I don't know how I'm going to go through life without him,'' Janet Maitland said, sobbing.

Initially, the case was characterized as an accident by the Florida Highway Patrol.

But family members said they plastered fliers on windows of nearby businesses and found a witness who saw the boys attack James. A private investigator dug deeper and eventually gave the information to Miami-Dade's homicide unit, which tracked down Brown and Goa.

Goa gave a ''detailed confession'' while Brown ''made self-serving statements, basically denying his involvement in this incident,'' the arrest report said.

`SAID HE DIDN'T DO IT'

Goa has been arrested seven other times on charges that include burglary and battery.

Brown was already wanted for violating probation -- he failed to report to his probation officer -- on a 2007 strong-arm robbery charge.

A former foster child, Brown had been living with his girlfriend and her family, said her father, Willie Singer Hill.

''I asked him. He said he didn't do it,'' Hill said.

wow... what has the world come to?

EDIT: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/broward/story/406440.html

 

[shiroun]

This is sad. I mean, that kid sounds fit and healthy, and along come two kids who just decide on beating him up. They didn't know him.... I swear to god this pisses me off, and it was over a FUCKING PSP!

 

[khmp]

It was very unfortunate that the he fled his attackers by going into traffic. I sincerely doubt his attackers meant for it to end so terribly. To have James life cut short for such a trivial reason is tragic and upsetting but is it honestly the worst reason you've heard someone killed over? :sad:

 

[bulls84]

Pitiful. Just Pitiful. I can't believe this is what are youth are coming to.

 

[master game maker]

Those bastards! Who the hell could even SLEEP after they just had a perfectly healthy, non-selfish kid who was for one, seemed like one of the nicest guys killed in the fucking messed up place called Earth. IT WAS A DAMN VIDEO GAME THAT TOOK A GUYS LIFE?!?! Fucking pissed.

@khmp, who cares!? Nothing would have happened if they didn't decide to rob some guy of his FREAKIN PSP.

 

[Clizzz]

NO, this is an outrage. I say death penalty. I'm as serious as a heart attack. DEATH. This is one of the most outrageous things I've ever heard teens do. For a PSP. 2 Weeks at kroger can get you one now these days, and they had to go rob this poor kid. DEATH.

 

[sixtyandaquarter]

Please for the love of Mike link to your sources.  Simply putting a block of text in a quote doesn't make anything more than speculated news, even if it's 100% likely to have happened.

On topic...
How is this any different than the kids getting shot for sneakers?  Or the old woman getting stabbed for her purse?  Or the guy getting hit by his own car at the hands of a carjacker?  Or the boy getting killed over his bike?  Or the business man getting curb stomped for his gold watch? Or the... you get the idea.
Replace sneaker with purse with gold watch with PSP...
I don't see the surprise or the amazing aspect personally.

 

[mawk]

Clizzz, you sure you want them dead? Consider the drain capital punishment puts on taxpayer dollars, and the fact that it robs Death Row inmates of anything they might have learned from their mistakes.

I doubt this crime was for the PSP as much as it was for the recreational value; you knock someone down and take their stuff, it's a clear display of dominance. Your standard gangsta wannabes live for this sort of thing; showing that they're better, because they can. Though far short of innocent, it was just a mugging that happened to take place under a bad sign. His death is their fault as much as it is the truck driver's; if they meant to drive him into traffic, it would be another matter. As it stands, that young man's death should hopefully do a pretty good job of making them clean up their acts once they make it out of the hoosegow, unless they're complete sociopaths.

It's unfortunate, sure, but crying for blood isn't going to do anyone any measure of good.

Please for the love of Mike link to your sources.

:blush:

 

[Clizzz]

Ahh, good point, there. Wasn't thinking bout the taxpayer dollars. Sixty you're right though, this is not different from the normal robbing, but let me ask you this. How would you react if placed in this situation, and someone you know (sibling, cousin, or friend) was killed due to this sort of "accident"? How would you react, and what type of punishment would you lobby for?

 

[Mega Flare]

if james just letted them have his damn psp he would still be alive today. its his own damn fault for his death. if your geting robbed just let them fuckin take it.

 

[sixtyandaquarter]

Please for the love of Mike link to your sources.

:blush:

Oh, let me fix that for you...
Please for the love of Miek link to your sources.

There ya go.

On topic, at least more so...
Screw that "if someones going to rob you just give it to them!" comments.  I wouldn't have had crap in HS if that was the case, and by the end of the month no one was even attempting to jack anything.  If they have a weapon, and look serious - okay try to stall and talk and if worse give it to them, but when someones just running up on you don't run across the street!  Run parallel to it and scream and wave your arms like a little girl, someone's bound to take pity and scream out the window at the least for the muggers to stop.  You'd be surprised how little that works, but you stop traffic at least and then you can run across.

Or you do the smart thing and throw them into traffic...

 

[shiroun]

if james just letted them have his damn psp he would still be alive today. its his own damn fault for his death. if your geting robbed just let them fuckin take it.

You are kidding... right? If someone were trying to steal your stuff, you'd let them have it? Don't think on it, do instinct you idiot, you don't know what they are going to do, are they going to shoot you? Are they going to beat the shit out of you? AND YOU ARE SAYING ITS JAME'S FAULT? HES THE FUCKING DEAD KID, HE WAS RUNNING FOR HIS LIFE. Leave. NOW.

 

[Yggdrassil]

You are kidding... right? If someone were trying to steal your stuff, you'd let them have it? Don't think on it, do instinct you idiot, you don't know what they are going to do, are they going to shoot you? Are they going to beat the shit out of you? AND YOU ARE SAYING ITS JAME'S FAULT? HES THE FUCKING DEAD KID, HE WAS RUNNING FOR HIS LIFE. Leave. NOW.

For the fist time, I agree with you shiroun. Why post that, Mega? It is human instinct, as Gearpunk said, to be dominant. Even if people are coming to beat you, some part of you wants to fight back somewhere. Some part of you wants to make sure they don't win.

That post was uncalled for. It's his fault he was attacked? Unless he was chucking stones at them or something, it was not his fault.

 

[mawk]

It is human instinct, as Gearpunk said, to be dominant.

Hey, don't put words in my mouth. :<

 

[khmp]

Mega Flare is just saying that given the situation of being mugged you shouldn't fight back. I agree with him there. But in this case Mega Flare he got away from them and started to run. I can't imagine anyone doing anything differently. I think he just missed that part in his defense.

 

[Ratty524]

Nothing really new to me. People, no matter what age, do harmful stuff to each other for stupid reasons. While this is indeed a sad story, it's nothing that's too out-of-the ordinary in my perspective.

 

[Loofah]

Spoiler: I'm not heartess

But.... Since this topic is not in the synopsism, I think I'll make a dumb joke :smoke:

Honestly it was a PSP, I wouldn't have gone over and punched him, I might have burnt my eyes looking at the PSP game he was playing!

Now if a guy was walking home from the library at 6pm, was holding a DS and I had my six burly friends with me, then I would have mugged him. -me and my friends- :shades:

Spoiler: On a more serious note

That is just stupid, I reckon they should never come out of Juvy/Jail for what they did, thats just fucked up. :sad:

 

[Cruelty]

dude, get your own

 

[Venetia]

dude, get your own

Oh jeezum christmas I just popped a lung laughing :'X

 

[Rain]

wow, I knew PSP's were more pricey than a DS but I didn't know the cost would be MURDER!!! WTF!? ... Crisis Core isn't even out here yet... they need to hold there horses a lil bit [¬¬