School Shooter Gives Middle Finger During Sentencing Hearing

Appearing in court on the morning of March 19th, 2013, 18 year old TJ Lane smirked his way through the sentencing hearing, showing little remorse, and later gave his victims’ families the middle finger. He also wore a shirt with the word “KILLER” written across the front in black marker – similar to the one he was wearing a year ago after opening fire at a high school in Ohio.

Lane showed little remorse during the sentencing, rocking back and forth and smirking, while four relatives of the victims spoke.

On February 27th, 2012, Lane, then 17, entered the Chardon High School with a .22 caliber pistol and a knife. He opened fire in the cafeteria, killing three of his classmates – Daniel Parmertor (16), Demetrius Hewlin (16) and Russell King Jr. (17) – and injuring a further three more. Investigators reported that Lane had previously pleaded guilty to the crime but he did not know why he had committed the act. After appearing in juvenile court last year, a judge had ruled Lane as being mentally competent to stand trial in court, despite suffering from hallucinations and psychosis.

“You’re really lucky there’s so many police in this room right now,” the mother of one of Lane’s victims said, before his sentence was handed down. “You can smile all you want. My family will move on, not you.”

It was then that Lane addressed the courtroom – an action that he was advised against by his counsel – making a brief, crude statement and ending it by saying “F—k all of you,” before raising his middle finger at the victims’ families.

Prosecutor James Flaiz told the court, “What we’re dealing with is a disgusting human being. He still refuses to offer any explanation for why he did this. The only explanation I can offer is he is an evil person.”

Lane was given three consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole. He was not eligible for the death penalty as he was only 17 when the shootings happened.

Sources

• TJ Lane Life Sentence - Huffington Post
• School shooter smirks in court - Ninemsn