{"id":2020140,"date":"2023-09-02T09:09:02","date_gmt":"2023-09-02T13:09:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/iowa-teen-on-trial-for-killing-of-2-fellow-students-says-he-feared-for-his-life\/"},"modified":"2023-09-02T09:11:01","modified_gmt":"2023-09-02T13:11:01","slug":"iowa-teen-on-trial-for-killing-of-2-fellow-students-says-he-feared-for-his-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/iowa-teen-on-trial-for-killing-of-2-fellow-students-says-he-feared-for-his-life\/","title":{"rendered":"Iowa teen on trial for killing 2 students claims self-defense."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fiowa-teen-on-trial-for-killing-of-2-fellow-students-says-he-feared-for-his-life%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2020140&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>An Iowa Teenager&#8217;s Fearful Act: Shooting at\u2063 an Alternative Educational Program<\/h2>\n<p>An Iowa teenager found himself in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/border-patrol-agents-rescue-toddlers-dropped-from-14-foot-barrier-at-border-into-u-s\/\" title=\"Border Patrol Agents Rescue Toddlers Dropped From 14-Foot Barrier At Border Into U.S.\">life-threatening situation<\/a> when \u2062he tragically shot two fellow \u200bstudents at an alternative educational\u200d program\u200b for at-risk youth. Contrary to the prosecution&#8217;s claim that it was a premeditated attack on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ms-13-member-pleads-guilty-to-brutal-murder-in-maryland\/\" title=\"MS-13 Member Pleads Guilty To Brutal Murder in Maryland\">rival gang members<\/a>, the teenager&#8217;s lawyer asserts that he acted out of fear for his own life.<\/p>\n<p>Preston Walls, 19, along with another student, faces charges for the shooting that took place\u200d on January 23 at \u2063the Starts\u200d Right Here program. The incident resulted in the deaths of 18-year-old Gionni Dameron\u200c and 16-year-old Rashad Carr. The families of the victims have vehemently denied any involvement in gangs.<\/p>\n<p>The founder of the school, Will Keeps, who himself is a former gang member, was wounded while attempting to intervene and stop the violence. He continues to suffer from lingering injuries.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Related Stories<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/world\/shooting-of-a-brown-bear-leaves-2-cubs-motherless-and-sparks-outrage-in-italy-5485025\">Shooting of \u2063a Brown Bear Leaves\u200d 2 Cubs Motherless and \u2062Sparks \u2064Outrage in Italy<\/a><br \/>\n      <br \/>\n      <span class=\"text-comp-caption\">9\/1\/2023<\/span>\n    <\/li>\n<li>\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/audio-reveals-911-caller-in-university-of-north-carolina-shooting-immediately-identified-a-suspect-5484968\">Audio Reveals\u2063 911 Caller in University of North Carolina Shooting Immediately Identified a Suspect<\/a><br \/>\n      <br \/>\n      <span class=\"text-comp-caption\">9\/1\/2023<\/span>\n    <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>As\u200d the trial of Mr. Walls commenced, his attorney,\u2063 Glen Downey, revealed that \u200dhis\u2064 client acknowledges pulling the trigger \u2063but did so out\u200b of a desperate desire \u2064to survive. &#8220;Preston decided he didn&#8217;t want to go home to his family in a pine box,&#8221; Mr. Downey stated.<\/p>\n<p>Prosecutor\u2062 Stephanie Cox informed the jurors that they would \u200dhear testimony from Mr. Keeps and witness footage of the shootings. &#8220;You will watch \u200da video and you will see with your own eyes Preston Walls shoot 30 \u2063times,&#8221; Ms. Cox asserted.<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Walls\u200d faces charges of two counts of first-degree murder, attempted murder, and criminal gang participation. The\u200d process of selecting the \u200djury took over three days.<\/p>\n<p>Bravon Tukes, also 19 years old, is\u2062 scheduled to stand trial on the same charges on October \u200c2. Police allege that Mr.\u2062 Walls fired the shots before \u200bfleeing in a car driven by Mr. Tukes.<\/p>\n<div>\n<figure style=\"width:600px\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Bravon\u2064 Michael Tukes (L) and \u2063Preston Walls. (Polk County Jail \u2062via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>The prosecution presented their case by playing a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/iowa-teen-on-trial-for-killing-of-2-fellow-students-says-he-feared-for-his-life\/\" title=\"Iowa teen on trial for killing 2 students claims self-defense.\">graphic police bodycam video<\/a> that depicted the chaotic scene when\u2063 officers \u200carrived. Jurors witnessed the victims lying \u2063on the\u200c school floor and observed an \u2063officer attempting CPR on one of\u2062 the teens.<\/p>\n<p>Lieutenant Andrew Phipps described the overwhelming &#8220;smell of gunpowder&#8221;\u2062 upon entering the school, along with the presence of numerous shell casings on the floor.<\/p>\n<p>YaVonne Palmer, an administrator at Starts \u2063Right Here, was down the\u2062 hallway when the shooting erupted. She recalled that the sound of gunfire created such a cacophony \u200bthat it resembled the shattering of a cupboard full of dishes.<\/p>\n<p>Initially, the prosecution sought to try Mr. Walls and \u200dMr. Tukes together. However, \u2063at the request of Mr. Tukes&#8217; lawyer, who plans to utilize Mr. Walls&#8217; testimony in his client&#8217;s defense, the judge decided to separate the proceedings. The \u200dtrial for Mr. Walls is expected \u200bto last approximately one week.<\/p>\n<p>Less than an hour after the shooting at the\u200b school on the outskirts of downtown \u200cDes Moines, police apprehended Mr. Walls.<\/p>\n<p>The\u200d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/stealth-fighters-performance-not-living-up-to-the-price-tag\/\" title=\"Stealth Fighter\u2019s Performance Not Living Up to the Price Tag\">alternative program<\/a>, which is affiliated with the Des Moines public schools, \u2062temporarily closed following the incident but reopened within a few weeks. Currently, around 30 students attend the program.<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Keeps, the school&#8217;s founder, was a 15-year-old member of a Chi<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Preston Walls, 19, one of two students charged in the shooting at an Iowa alternative educational program, feared for his life when he fatally shot two fellow students, according to his lawyer. Prosecutors claim it was a premeditated attack on rival gang members, but the defense disputes this.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":136,"featured_media":2020141,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[543],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2020140","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-epoch-times"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2020140","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/136"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2020140"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2020140\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2020141"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2020140"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2020140"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2020140"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}