Boy Shot to Death by Classmate a Day Before School Ends

The last day of classes at an Inglewood junior high school was marred Friday by news that a popular eighth-grader was shot to death the day before and another classmate arrested on suspicion of murder.

Police said Lydell Carr, 14, was shot in the chest by a 13-year-old friend Thursday after the boy with the gun asked Carr, “Do you think it would hurt if I shot you?”

The shooting took place at 4:40 p.m. about a block from Lydell’s home at a popular gathering spot for youths outside an apartment complex on South Fir Street. Classmates of the two boys said the 13-year-old had brought the gun to school earlier that day.

A neighbor said she saw several children scattering after the gun went off and then she spotted a boy dragging another boy away from the street. Lydell died of a single bullet wound in the chest at Daniel Freeman Memorial Hospital.

Police said there was no dispute between the two boys and the shooting appeared to be accidental.

Sgt. Harold Moret said the 13-year-old suspect was charged with murder because “the negligence is so gross that it may go beyond the realm of an accident.”

The 13-year-old, whose name was not released, was being held at Eastlake Juvenile Hall Friday awaiting a ruling by the district attorney’s office on what charges will be filed. A spokesman said a decision would be made Monday at the earliest.

One boy who said he witnessed the shooting said he believed it was accidental.

“I don’t think he tried to shoot him,” said the 12-year-old boy, who did not want to be identified. “I don’t think he even knew there was a bullet in it. It was like a guy who maybe got a gun from a relative or something and was playing with it.”

Police said they are investigating reports that the .25-caliber pistol used in the shooting belonged to a relative of the suspect.

The mood at Crozier Junior High School on Friday was far more subdued than on a typical last day of classes, said Principal Marcia Hazelton.

Hazelton, who had the student files for both Lydell Carr and the suspect on her desk, said she was “devastated” by the death. She said the diminutive Lydell was often kidded by friends about his large ears.

“He would come in here every day to see me,” she said. “He would ask to water the plants and feed the fish. He was like a son to me. I just saw him yesterday. He had these big ears. He looked like a little Dr. Spock kid.”

Hazelton said she did not know the suspect, who had transferred to Crozier in April from Mark Twain Junior High School in Mar Vista. Hazelton said she was unaware that the 13-year-old had brought a gun to school.

Several classmates of Lydell gathered Friday afternoon near the apartment building where his family lives. They described him as an avid fan of video games and said he had been trying to find a job for the summer. They said Lydell was a friend of the suspect, whom they described as a tough kid who was new to the neighborhood.

“He wasn’t into gangs or anything,” a 14-year-old classmate said of Lydell. “. . . What a way to start the summer.”