Awful News, OU recruit Herman Mitchell killed

[BASSooner]

It's on soonerscoop.com I can't get into details though.



Just sad :(

[goingoneight]

Oh my god... this is terrible. God rest his soul and prayers for his family and friends. :(

[Soonerfan88]

From what I can get, it was a drive-by shooting as he was leaving practice.


Prayers to his family & teammates. Truly sad...

[freshchris05]

My Prayers go out to his family....

[jk the sooner fan]

from the houston chronicle


A teenager was shot to death Friday afternoon following an argument in the parking lot of a northwest Harris County apartment complex, sheriff's deputies said.

Herman Mitchell, 17, suffered multiple wounds and died at Ben Taub General Hospital, said Lt. John Martin of the Harris County Sheriff's Office.

Witnesses say Mitchell and another teen were fighting at the Trestles Apartments on the 14300 block of Cornerstone Village Drive about 4:30 p.m., Martin said.

"Evidently, they separated and one came back a short time later with a rifle and fired multiple times," he said.

Homicide investigators are questioning two people in custody, one of whom is thought to be the shooter, Martin said.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5082387.html

[Phantasm]

Aug. 24, 2007, 8:50PM
Teen fatally shot at northwest Harris apartments

By LINDSAY WISE
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle


A teenager was shot to death Friday afternoon following an argument in the parking lot of a northwest Harris County apartment complex, sheriff's deputies said.
Herman Mitchell, 17, suffered multiple wounds and died at Ben Taub General Hospital, said Lt. John Martin of the Harris County Sheriff's Office.
Witnesses say Mitchell and another teen were fighting at the Trestles Apartments on the 14300 block of Cornerstone Village Drive about 4:30 p.m., Martin said.
"Evidently, they separated and one came back a short time later with a rifle and fired multiple times," he said.
Homicide investigators are questioning two people in custody, one of whom is thought to be the shooter, Martin said.

[BOOMERBRADLEY]

God bless his family :(

[r5TPsooner]

Stories like this just **** me off!

RIP young man.

[SOONER STEAKER]

Amazing. What ever happened to settling disagreements with your fist.

May God hold Herman in he palm of his hand and give his family, friends and teammates the courage to carry on.

[olevetonahill]

Dayum , Sad news
Prayers all around

[Rogue]

Just tragic.

[soonerthanu]

RIP Herman

Makes one think about their own life and family.

[KantoSooner]

Very solemn news. One dead kid, another whose life is pretty well shot. Pretty much typifies the phrase,'What a waste'.

[Seamus]

Unreal. Godspeed to his family. Jeez, what a horrific thing. :(

[sooneron]

What a horrible shame.

[william_brasky]

Sad. Prayers to his family and friends.

[Rhino]

Just awful.

[soonerboomer93]

damn shame


rip Herman Mitchell

[zeke]

Sad news. Prayers to his family, friends & teamates.

[jrsooner]

My wife thinks that's the part of Houston that's been getting alot of press lately about the violence in that area. If so, I don't think the story is so shocking, yes it's sad, but not out of the realm of likelyhood. It just shocked me more that it was an OU commit.

[birddog]

i'm so sick and tired of hearing about these kind of tragedies.

prayers to the family. RIP HERMAN.

so, this season will be started with sadness. it makes last august look like a celebration, in comparison.

[Spanish Sooner]

How far has society degressed these days were people have to resort to killing someone just to win a fight. Prayers to the family and for his soul. This is just ridiculous. I had a teammate of mine in highschool die in a shooting a year after we had graduated because he got mixed up with the wrong crowd and was at the wrong place at the wrong time. But this, this is ridiculous. THis happened as the kid was going to practice, inside his apartment complex. I really am at a loss for words, its just. Rest in Peace Herman Mitchell, rest in peace

[stonecoldsoonerfan]

i attended highschool about 30 years ago. i attended the largest h.s. in the state of okla. at that time. back then, if someone got into a fistfight, that was a BIG deal. now shooting someone is no big deal for that agegroup. i don't mean to sound like an "old foagie", but this stuff has really gotten out of hand the last 30 years.

[TheHumanAlphabet]

Frickin' punk from Louisiana, hope he tastes Texas justice - the death penalty!

Prayers to the victim's family.

This area isn't as bad as SW Houston has become (for reasons many people understand), but I think it is beginning to rival that area.

[SOONER STEAKER]

Being a kid today is tough. I will never understand why people think it's OK to grab a gun and settle issues. I know there is something to be learned from this tragedy, I just hope many youth get the lesson so this kind of thing doesn't happen again.

RIP Herman MItchell

[SoonerBOI]

RIP

[devOUt]

Vaya con dios, Herman.

[Flagstaffsooner]

God Bless him and his family. That is just terrible. I am so glad that I don't live in that hell hole of a city anymore.

[poke4christ]

I'd like to offer prayers and condolences from myself and all of the cowboys out there. We can sympathize with you pain and as Oklahomans we share in it now.

http://www.orangepower.com/showthread.php?t=39410

[jrsooner]

Here's the latest news on the subject..."bold" comment was my emphasis.

Westfield High football star gunned down (http://www.soonerfans.com/forums/showthread.php?t=98006&page=2)


Aug. 25, 2007, 1:44AM
Westfield High football star gunned down
Sheriff's official says the standout linebacker was in a fight just prior to the shooting
By LINDSAY WISE and SAM KHAN JR.
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle

Westfield deals with preseason tragedy
NewsWatch Homicide: Remembering Houston's victims A high school football standout who had accepted a scholarship offer to play for the University of Oklahoma next year was gunned down in the parking lot of a northwest Harris County apartment complex Friday afternoon.

Herman Mitchell, 17, was pronounced dead at Ben Taub General Hospital after another teen shot him multiple times, said Sgt. Bryan Pair of the Harris County Sheriff's Office homicide division.

Authorities have charged 19-year-old Emile "Rusty" Lewis of Louisiana with Mitchell's murder, Pair said. Lewis, who was taken into custody after the shooting, is being held in a Harris County jail, he said.

Mitchell, 6-0 and 200 pounds, played linebacker for Westfield High School, and had verbally committed to play at Oklahoma next year. He was a first-team all-district selection on the Mustangs, who were 13-1 last season and were Class 5A Division I Region II semifinalists. He was the team's top returning tackler, recording 115 tackles and two sacks last season.

Oklahoma head football coach Bob Stoops is aware of Mitchell's death and "obviously upset about the news," school spokesman Kenny Mossman said. "When I spoke with Bob tonight, he was really stunned. It was a blow to him," Mossman said.

Witnesses say Mitchell and three friends were leaving his apartment in the 14300 block of Cornerstone Village Drive on their way to nearby Westfield about 4:30 p.m. when Mitchell saw Lewis in the parking lot and "exchanged looks" with him, Pair said.

"Apparently they were friends at one time or another," Pair said, and he added that he didn't know what started the argument.

A fist fight broke out in the parking lot, Pair said. "Then the suspect ran to his apartment and came back with a rifle and that's when he shot Mitchell," he said.

Deputies responding to the shooting at the Trestles apartment complex immediately began searching the area, Pair said.

"They found a young man matching the suspect's description and brought him back to the scene, where he was identified by witnesses," he said.

Investigators took Lewis to the homicide squad's headquarters on Lockwood for questioning. Several hours later, he was charged with murder, Pair said.


Team stunned at loss
Mitchell's teammates were on a bus en route to the Aldine ISD Auxiliary Stadium for a scrimmage with Aldine when they heard Mitchell had been shot. When they arrived at the stadium, they learned he had died.

"Everybody was in shock," said friend Brodrick Brown, a senior defensive back. "First we heard he was shot and he was on the way to the hospital. Then, 15 minutes later we got the news and everybody burst out in tears."

The team canceled the scrimmage and gathered back at the school to mourn, Brown said.

"We went to the weight room and everybody met as a program and as a team," he said. "We said a few words of wisdom and a prayer. We had a little get-together outside in the parking lot and we were comforting each other and praying for him and his family."

Brown said Mitchell was a strong leader and good friend both on and off the field.

"He was like my brother," said Brown, who has verbally committed to playing for Oklahoma State University. "On the field we'd laugh and smile and giggle with each other. In the weight room we were partners, weightlifting buddies. We'd talk about the game at lunchtime and how we were going to beat everybody this season."

Playing without Mitchell will be hard, Brown said.

"That's something we have to overcome," he said. "We have to focus, but we have to keep him in our heart and prayers and get ready for the season. It's going to be hard in his absence. It changes the program completely."


Promising future dashed
Mitchell was to be a member of the Houston Chronicle's preseason first-team All-Greater Houston football squad, which comes out Thursday.

He also was a member of the Touchdown Club of Houston's preseason football team.

The recruiting Web site Rivals.com had him ranked 45th in the nation at safety, which he was projected to play in college. According to the site, he ran a 4.53-second 40-yard dash, had a 29-inch vertical leap, could bench press 325 pounds and squat 405.

Chronicle reporter Joseph Duarte contributed to this report

[oupride]

This is front page on the Houston Chronicle. I just finished reading it. I had no idea he was an OU commit. May God rest his soul and give strength to his family.

[All_Day_28]

A Houston-area high school football player who had verbally committed to Oklahoma was shot and killed Friday afternoon in an apartment complex parking lot, the Houston Chronicle reported.

Herman Mitchell, 17, suffered multiple gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at Ben Taub General Hospital, Sgt. Bryan Pair of the Harris County Sheriff's Office homicide division told the newspaper.

Authorities have charged 19-year-old Emile "Rusty" Lewis of Louisiana with Mitchell's murder, Pair said, according to the report. Police said the two men, who were previously friends, had gotten into a fight when Lewis ran to his apartment, grabbed a rifle and shot Mitchell, authorities told the newspaper.

Mitchell, a 6-foot 200-pound linebacker, was entering his senior year at Westfield High School. He was first-team all-district at Westfield, which went 13-1 last season and reached the Texas Class 5A playoffs. He was the team's top returning tackler with 115 tackles and two sacks last season and was rated 45th at safety, his projected position in college, by scouting service Rivals.com.

Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops has been made aware of Mitchell's death and is "obviously upset about the news," school spokesman Kenny Mossman said. "When I spoke with Bob tonight, he was really stunned. It was a blow to him," Mossman said, according to the newspaper.

Mitchell's teammates were on a bus on the way to a scrimmage when they heard Mitchell had been shot. They learned he had died when they arrived.

"Everybody was in shock," Mitchell's friend Brodrick Brown, a senior defensive back at Westfield told the Chronicle. "First we heard he was shot and he was on the way to the hospital. Then, 15 minutes later we got the news and everybody burst out in tears."

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=2990730

This is very tragic.

[All_Day_28]

already posted sorry... close please

[usmc-sooner]

man than is horrible,

not that it matters but was he committed to OU?

it wouldn't matter if he was committed to Texas, my prayers go out to his family.

[birddog]

makes me feel better that the suspect is in custody. maybe more of the story will come to light, not that there can ever be justification for something like this.

[jrsooner]

not that it matters but was he committed to OU?
Chronicle had:

Mitchell, 6-0 and 200 pounds, played linebacker for Westfield High School, and had verbally committed to play at Oklahoma next year.

[GrapevineSooner]

Prayers to his family. :(

And it doesn't matter that he was an OU recruit. Doesn't even matter that he played football.

What matters is he was a young man with his whole life in front of him. A life he'll never get to live now.

[Collier11]

There are so many cowards out there now, this is why when some drunk idiot trys to pick a fight I always try and walk away, cus you never know how stupid they might be. God bless him and his family!

[picasso]

saw it in the Tulsa World this morning. what a senseless waste.

this world is f'd up.

[fadada1]

tragedy??

not sure.

i think tragedies are unpreventable accidents that take people away too early. this was preventable - plain and simple. the kid that did this will now spend the rest of his life rotting in prison... the victim will never reach his potential (or even have a chance at it).

stupid.

[sendbaht]

Very sad. RIP Herman RIP

[SoonerRecon]

tragedy??

the kid that did this will now spend the rest of his life rotting in prison...

hopefully he gets the death penalty, so we don't have to pay for his food and shelter for the next 50 years. from FEMA to state prison, get a work ethic.

may God bless Herman's family and friends

[Ash]

Thoughts and prayers to his family and friends.

[TheHumanAlphabet]

...from FEMA to state prison, get a work ethic.

So was the perp a NOLA refugee?

[stoops the eternal pimp]

its a shame when someones makes permanent decisions on temporary problems....

[utex74]

RIP, Sooner

[BamaSon25]

What is this world coming to? RIP and Boomer Sooner.

RTR
BamaSon25

[badger]

The folks on OUInsider have started a fund to help out with this kid's family. Here's (http://ouinsider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9975) the link for you guys. I know he hadn't even set a foot on campus as a student yet, but that makes him no less a Sooner in my eyes.

God bless him and his family...

[olevetonahill]

hopefully he gets the death penalty, so we don't have to pay for his food and shelter for the next 50 years. from FEMA to state prison, get a work ethic.

may God bless Herman's family and friends
Naw we will Just pay for endless appeals and Lid to defend his right to suck air ! Then Give him a Humane Death after a Great Supper !
**** lock the punk away fer ever . Trust me its cheaper than tryin to Deathalize him !:pop:

[soonerloyal]

I apologize in advance for anyone I might offend.

I'm just so sick of hearing about and dealing with our best and most precious dying before their time. As a mother, it hits me so hard, no matter whether it's a ridiculously preventable tragedy like this, or losing another sweet soul in combat. Dear God, our children are supposed to bury us, not the other way around. How inexpressibly heartbreaking this news is.

May God reach into the hearts and souls of everyone who loved this young man, and comfort & heal them as only He can. May they be comforted and helped and strengthened in every way possible. Bless especially Herman's mother, Father, and please hold her lovingly in the palm of your hands.

There's just no understanding things like this...

[jrsooner]

So was the perp a NOLA refugee?From the sounds of it "yes".

Here's the video feed of them talking to Mitchell's mom

http://www.click2houston.com/video/13975511/index.html

I hope it works. They showed more concerning the players, and community on tonight's news but didn't have that on their website yet.

[Soonerus]

Another Katrina victim....horrible...

[jrsooner]

From the OU Houston Alumni Association email:


HOUSTON 2008 OU FOOTBALL RECRUIT SHOT AND KILLED THIS WEEKEND

Herman Mitchell, a Westfield High School senior and a top football prospect, was shot and killed this past weekend here in Houston. Westfield High School is located in the 1960 area in Northwest Houston. Herman had recently given a verbal commitment to attend OU. Three weeks ago he had spent time in Norman and was looking forward to attending OU.
Even though Herman was not yet a Sooner, his heart was with OU. Adam Fineberg, an OU Alumni here in Houston has set up a website where you can find out more information and help the family who is in need of financial assistance. I believe that this is an opportunity for the Houston OU Community to come together for a worthy cause. The website where you can find additional information is located at:
http://hermanmitchellousooners.pledgepage.org/

To contact Adam directly e-mail him at: [email protected]


http://hermanmitchellousooners.pledgepage.org/