An 18-year-old high school senior was shot dead outside of his home in Colorado late on May 8, just one day after a school shooting in the state left one dead and eight wounded.
That school shooting took place in Highlands Ranch, less than 30 miles outside of Denver. The high school senior, Lloyd Chavez, was killed outside his house in Centennial, also just outside of Denver and less than 10 miles from Highlands Ranch. He was rushed to a hospital, where he later died from his wounds.
Chavez was a student at Cherokee Trail High School, which is about 20 miles northeast of STEM School Highlands Ranch, where the school shooting unfolded on Tuesday.
im sorry things changed and you can’t rewrite history, so the only thing i can grasp onto without guilt or regret, is just you Lloyd Chavez. you were so authentic in your own special way, i appreciated having you in my life, thank you Lloyd, for everything. long live you #LLL????❤️ pic.twitter.com/zlKoXi0VQO
— ????????Anastasia???????? (@anastasiaaaab) May 10, 2019
The 18-year-old victim was identified as Chavez in a letter sent to students and parents by Cherokee Trail High School Principal Jean Incitti, reported 9 News. Chavez was a skilled rugby player who played four years for the Aurora Saracens youth rugby team.
“[Lloyd] always worked hard. He always tried to get better,” said Dave Farmer, one of his coaches. “But the greatest compliment in my world is he always wanted people to be happy and he worked to make sure everyone was having a good time and everyone was working hard and everyone felt included in the group.”
Chavez’s father, Lloyd Chavez III, told 9 News that his son walked inside the family’s house after being shot and asked family members to call 911. Chavez’s sister tried saving his life.
Denver News Cherokee Trail High School student shot, killed near his Centennial home https://t.co/K1rrEMQvE1 pic.twitter.com/efR46OiGfg
— Denver NewsChannel (@Denver_NC) May 9, 2019
The shooting was the fourth homicide of the year involving a teen in the eastern suburbs of Denver, reported the Denver Post. The other three were in nearby Aurora.
A 16-year-old was shot dead on March 6 in the parking lot of the Aurora Town Center. No suspects are in custody.
Twelve days later, Colorado Early Colleges student Jeremy Jamaal Rudolph, also 16, was shot dead in the parking lot of the Sable Technology Center. Police arrested a juvenile suspect.
And on May 6, another 16-year-old, Ryan Robertson, was shot dead on South Memphis Street.
NEW: The Arapahoe County coroner has identified the boy shot and killed in southeast Aurora on Monday as 16-year-old Ryan Robertson. He was shot multiple times and his death has been ruled a homicide.
— Quincy Snowdon (@QuincySnowdon) May 9, 2019
Neighbors rushed to help the teen after he was shot but he was later pronounced dead, reported KGMH.
Aurora Police Chief Nick Metz said that the shooter was at large and asked for the public’s help in finding him.
Metz claimed that the recent surge of violence among young people illustrates a bigger societal problem that police can’t solve alone.
“This is a societal problem, and we are now coming into summertime when it is heating up quick,” Metz said. “And we are seeing violence all around our city; we’re seeing violence all around our region.”
