Horrible: 5 FL teens set boy on fire over a $40 video game

[SpoilMeRotten]

I just heard about this on the radio today and it made me so upset...

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/US/burn...8829393&page=1

Four Florida teens who allegedly doused a 15-year-old boy with rubbing alcohol and set him on fire could be charged as adults because of the "degree of cruelty" involved in the attack, officials said today.
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Five teens pour rubbing alcohol on kid and set him on fire as an act of revenge.

A fifth boy who is only 13 may be too young to be charged as an adult.

The victim, Michael Brewer, remains on a ventilator in Jackson Memorial Ryder Hospital's burn unit. Dr. Nicholas Namias said Brewer is critically ill with burns over 65 percent of his body.

"Every part of his body is affected…his torso, legs, arms and head. It does look like the burns to his face and hands are not as bad as they could be," said Namias.

The use of an accelerant means the burn injuries will likely get worse in the coming weeks. "We consider flame burns to be worse that most other types of burns," the doctor said.
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Brewer is heavily sedated and his body is extremely swollen, doctors said. Even if Brewer makes it through the next few weeks, there is still the likelihood of organ failures and the painful prospect of multiple operations to replace the burned skin, his doctors said.

The vicious assault has shocked the Deerfield Beach community nestled on the Florida coast just north of Fort Lauderdale, not only for the act of setting Brewer afire but for the teens' chilling reaction.

"I'll be honest with you, a couple of them were laughing about it last night. [Only] one of them seemed genuinely sorry for what he did," said Sgt. Steve Feeley, according to ABC News affiliate WPBF.

"The sheriff called it one of the most heinous crimes he has seen in his 31 years in law enforcement. It's a cliche to say a crime has shocked a community, but this crime really has shocked the community," sheriff office spokesman Jim Leljedal told ABCNews.com.

Charged in the attack are Steve Shelton, 15, of Deerfield Beach, Jeremy Jarvis, 13, Denver Jarvis, 15, Matthew Bent, 15, and Jesus Mendez, 15, all of Pompano Beach.

The boys are all charged with aggravated battery, according to the sheriff's office. In addition, Mendez, who police allege actually flicked the lighter that caused the fire, is charged with attempted second degree murder.

The Broward County State Attorney's office has 30 days to decide whether or not to try Shelton, Bent, Mendez and Denver Jarvis as adults. According to Assistant State Attorney Maria Schneider, in Florida people who are 14 and older can be transferred to adult court for certain types of serious felonies.

"Certainly the degree of cruelty and lack of consideration for others in this crime is something we take very, very seriously," Schneider said.

One of the suspects, Jeremy Jarvis, could only be transferred to adult court by way of a grand jury for certain offenses, but not for aggravated battery, because he is only 13.

In order to make the decision, Schneider said the State Attorney's office will take into account any prior record on the part of the juveniles, their behavioral history and the victim's family's wishes. Schneider said her office has made no decision yet on whether or not to charge the juveniles as adults.

"We are nowhere near that point yet," she said.

Authorities are calling the crime a "torturous attack" and say it all may have started over a video game. Authorities said Brewer owed Bent $40 for a video game. When Brewer didn't pay up, Bent tried to steal a bicycle belonging to the Brewer family. The attempted theft was reported to the police.

The next day Brewer went to an apartment complex where the five suspects cornered him near a swimming pool, according to authorities. At that point, the sheriff's office alleges, Denver Jarvis splashed Brewer with rubbing alcohol and Jesus Mendez used a lighter to set him on fire. Brewer ran into the pool to try to douse the flames.

[Jahpson]

WTF is going on with the kids of today? they are out of control!!!! over a $40 video game? this materialism is getting ridiculous

[yeliab]

[oonik]

OMG ! Horrendous.... poor kid..

[elizat]

I don't know how people can be so cruel. I don't know what is wrong with society today, that people think this sort of thing is okay. It makes me terrified to think about how people will act in 10, 20+ years. I sometimes wonder if there were always the same number of sick people out there that enjoy hurting others and animals or if there is something about how we live today that has increased these sorts of incidents.

[canada's]

some people have no concept of right and wrong. nothing matters to them. we are so desensitized as a society, it makes me sick to my stomach.

i think there are more of these people that either enjoy or do not understand hurting people and animals. they grew up with lousy parents or no true guidance and veer off on their own, for the worse.

i hope this little boy recovers soon and can live the rest of his life in peace.

[HauteMama]

I saw the mother on the telly this morning, and I cried with her. I cannot imagine the pain that both she and her son are going through. And I cannot believe there are people so cruel and shortsighted who would do something like this. If those teens had ANY idea what this poor kid will go through, I cannot believe they would have done this. Stupid television shows show people doing things like this as a joke; I don't think many teens really can comprehend what the reality of a situation like this truly is.

[natalie78]

Last I heard, the one who actually flicked the lighter is going to be transferred to adult court. If they act like this as teens, there is no hope that they will be any better as adults. The best we can hope for is life in prison.

[Jahpson]

^ exactly. I bet they were laughing when they were setting him on fire. People like that don't need to be walking down the street. Can you imagine what they are like when they are mad?

[dolllover]

I think there have always been cruel and sick people and the fact that these kids were laughing at this poor boy as he was on fire puts this near the top in my book. At least there was a pool near by for him to jump in to otherwise he would be dead. I hope some of these kids get locked up for life. How can you rehabilitate that.

[Guccigirlkells]

They need to be charged as ADULTS....i don't care if the youngest one was 12...you know right from wrong

[envyme]

I agree!!

Originally Posted by Guccigirlkells

They need to be charged as ADULTS....i don't care if the youngest one was 12...you know right from wrong

[natalie78]

They most certainly should all be charged as adults! At their ages, they know the difference between right and wrong, legal and criminal. I bet that this is not their first run-in with trouble. As for the one who actually flicked the lighter, that boy is downright evil. He laughed when the police found him? How much more proof does one need? The victim has survived this far, but there is still the possibility of infection and organ failure. He will have pain and scars for the rest of his life. Those little sh*theads should never be free.

[Jahpson]

undoubtably they should be charged as adults

[LushBoutique]

OMG, this is so horrible!!! I wanted to cry thinking about what the boy went through! I really hope that he will be okay. As for the boys who did this to him, I'm just speechless and angered!!!