A pair of teen brothers walked up to a random stranger and demanded that he give them $1. When he refused, the teens brutally beat him in front of his family and caused his death. However, it wasn’t long before the teens’ father demanded that the judge release his boys, claiming that it was all just a “mistake.”
While enjoying the Great Frederick Fair with his family in Maryland, 59-year-old John Marvin Weed was suddenly approached by a group of teen boys. The young men unabashedly asked Weed to give them a $1. When he dismissed their request, the boys “harassed and followed” him and his family, demanding that he give up the cash.
Eventually, Weed became irritated by their hounding. It was then that investigators say he responded to their haranguing, which escalated into a heated argument, according to WRC.
“There was some sort of dialogue that ensued after that that made it a negative situation,” Frederick County State’s Attorney Charlie Smith said.
When Weed replied, the teens became enraged at his audacity to talk back to them. Within seconds, the teens encircled him, suggesting that they were looking for a fight. Disturbingly, Weed’s final moments were captured on a bystander’s camera.
In the seconds-long clip, Weed is seen turning his head to focus on one of the young men just before the culprit flies into view from the opposite side of the frame, delivering the fatal sucker punch to the back of his head. The man then collapses to the ground as several of the teens celebrate his demise by spitting on him and jumping around in jubilation.
“I think it’s despicable, and it tells me a lot about how these young people view this person by the very fact after they had him on the ground they taunted and they spit on him,” Frederick County Sheriff Chuck Jenkins said. “That to me shows hatred and disgust and despise.”
Smith confirmed that two young men, a 15-year-old boy and his 16-year-old brother, were arrested and charged in Weed’s death. They are currently charged as juveniles with second-degree assault. However, Smith explained that he is considering moving the 15-year-old to adult court and upping his charges of first-degree assault and reckless endangerment to a manslaughter charge.
“There was a punch that was delivered to the back of the head by the 16-year-old, at that point in time there was a number of minutes that elapsed after that at which point in time, you all saw the video, the younger 15-year-old came flying through, lands a deadly blow to the victim,” said Smith.
WJZ reports that the prosecutor has described the attack as “completely random” and that Weed was a “complete stranger” to the suspects. A public defender, who is representing the teens, said that they were in “complete shock” upon learning that their victim had died and that they never intended to kill him.
The teens’ father has openly pleaded for his sons to be released pending trial. He claimed that he is sorry for Weed’s family but trivialized his son’s fatal punch as a “mistake.”
“My son is not an animal,” he said of his 15-year-old son. “He’s never been in trouble. He made a mistake. He’s only 15. I feel for the other family. They lost a loved one. My son doesn’t deserve to spend the rest of his life in prison.”
Sheriff Jenkins criticized the father’s excuse, reiterating that there are “mistakes” and then there are crimes. He agreed with the prosecutor that since the teens’ actions resulted in serious consequences, their trial should result in serious punishment.
“They made an adult decision by doing what they did and ended up with a man losing his life,” Jenkins said. “They deserve the maximum penalty.”
The judge ultimately ordered the teens held in the custody of juvenile services until trial, rejecting their father’s plea. Only time will tell if the teen who delivered the fatal blow will be charged as an adult.
Such behavior doesn’t begin on the streets but starts in the home. For whatever reason, these teens were allowed to terrorize citizens without caring who they hurt and with no fear of repercussion.
