California teen killed in shooting at high school football game; suspect in custody

This is read by an automated voice.Please report any issues or inconsistencies here.

See more from the L.A.Times in Google Search.

Set us as preferred Independence High School was set to kick off its football season against Kern County rival Centennial High, but game night turned to tragedy.A gang-related shooting claimed the life of 17-year-old student-athlete Levi Brown inside the stadium gates on Friday, Bakersfield police confirmed.Brown played football for Independence High.In a Facebook post, football coach Vince Carter mourned his player, writing that Brown “was around the wrong crowd and was getting misled and misguided,” adding, “it hurts to see this is how it ended.” It remains unconfirmed whether Brown was on the junior varsity or varsity team.The shooting broke out around 8 p.m.

following an argument just as the varsity squad was taking the field, according to the football team’s Instagram account.Panic ensued as gunshots rang out.Video captured by KBAK/KBFX showed crowds of spectators and football players in full gear sprinting toward the exits.

Responding officers took Brown to Kern Medical, where he was pronounced dead.“We know that families look forward to coming out every Friday night to watch their kids play,” Bakersfield Police Officer Eric Celedon said in a news conference Friday.“This was an isolated incident, and we want to reinforce that school games in Bakersfield remain safe.”Despite those assurances, the violent outbreak has left the community shaken.“As a father who worked for the Kern high school district as a security guard, the district and the high school need to put a plan in place to prevent this from happening again,” said one parent on Facebook.

“We need to hold the school district accountable for this incident.”On Saturday, police confirmed that they arrested the suspected shooter, a 15-year-old boy.It was not immediately clear if the shooter was a student at Independence High.“Our h...