Teenager who allegedly killed 11-year-old in Minneapolis will not face murder charges

A 16-year-old who allegedly shot and killed a boy in Minneapolis will not be charged with murder because evidence shows the 11-year-old victim pointed what appears to be a firearm out of a stolen car before being shot.

The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office filed a juvenile petition Wednesday evening against the suspect, charging him with one count of being under 18 in possession of a firearm in relation to the shooting that took place near Folwell Park in north Minneapolis and killed 11-year-old Amir Atkins.

The Minnesota Star Tribune generally does not name juveniles involved in legal cases or incidents.

The petition alleges that surveillance footage shows the 16-year-old climbing into a Honda Fit outside the rec center at the park when two cars drive erratically through the area at high speeds. Amir was in the first vehicle, a Kia Optima, and is seen leaning out of the front passenger window “holding what appeared to be a firearm.”

A senior source at the Attorney’s Office said that vehicle and the one driving behind it were both stolen.

At that point the 16-year-old suspect allegedly jumped into the Honda Fit, grabbed a firearm and shot Amir in the head.

Several witnesses identified the suspect. In an interview, the 16-year-old identified himself from surveillance video of the shooting but denied possessing or firing the gun.

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said in a statement announcing the gun charge that the evidence made it unlikely that a murder charge would overcome a claim of self-defense.

“Everything about this case is a tragedy, especially that an 11-year-old boy, Amir Atkins, is dead,” Moriarty said. “This is a moment to grieve Amir’s death and to reassess absolutely everything about what system failures, including access to guns, led to an 11-year-old child dying under these circumstances. No matter what Amir was doing at the time, he was a young child. He deserved to live a full life.”

The Minneapolis Police Department arrested the suspect Tuesday morning in Apple Valley and booked him into the Hennepin County Juvenile Detention Center.

In a joint statement with Moriarty, Police Chief Brian O’Hara praised his investigators for working with the County Attorney’s Office and community partners in a complex case.

“We recognize the unimaginable pain of parents, loved ones, and friends who have experienced tragedy from gun violence with irreversible outcomes,” O’Hara said.

“There was also apparent gunfire damage to the right rear quarter panel area, the rear center area of the vehicle, the right rear wheel well, the rear door, and the trim of the rear bumper area,” the petition said.

After the bullet struck Amir, his brother, who was with him, asked nearby resident Troy Young for help.

Young drove the child in his pickup truck to a nearby Minneapolis officer. Despite CPR and help from medics, he said Amir died “right there in my lap.”

“I rodeo, so I see gory stuff all the time,” Young said. “When it’s an adult, it’s one thing, but when it’s a child, it kind of hits you.”

Many remembered Amir as a joyful, loving child. Residents decried the killing and raised concerns for youth beset by violence in the area.