Murder charge filed in Deshaun Hill killing; motive unclear
Updated 5 p.m.
Prosecutors have charged a suspect with second-degree murder in the fatal shooting of Minneapolis North student-athlete Deshaun Hill Jr. The 15-year-old died Feb. 10 after being shot the previous day along a Minneapolis street.
Prosecutors allege 29-year-old Cody Logan Fohrenkam fired the fatal shots. The criminal complaint doesn't offer a motive beyond saying Hill and the suspect passed close to one another on a sidewalk, possibly close enough to brush shoulders. The second-degree murder charge is specific to a killing that is intentional but not premeditated.
The complaint says witnesses and surveillance video put Fohrenkam at the scene. He allegedly told investigators he was in the area looking for someone who stole his cell phone.
Later Tuesday, Minneapolis police said Fohrenkam was in custody for an unrelated offense in the Carlton County jail when he was was arrested in connection with the Hill shooting.
Events to honor and remember Hill, including a commemoration at a basketball game against Hopkins High School, have been held throughout the month.
“The pain that is within this community right now can never make up for the pain that you five are experiencing, but at bare minimum, we can experience it with you, and we can experience it together so that you are not alone,” North’s principal Mauri Friestleben told Hill’s family at the Feb. 12 basketball game.
Watch Tuesday’s memorial service for Deshaun Hill:
Create a More Connected Minnesota
MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.