Man charged in connection with 12-year-old Minneapolis boy’s death to appear in court
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The second suspect arrested in connection with the deadly shooting of a 12-year-old boy in Minneapolis is set to appear in front of a judge Monday.
Letterance Demont Grady, 40, is accused of playing a role in London Bean’s death in September.
Prosecutors say Grady encouraged his 18-year-old son, Jeremiah Grady, to retaliate against Bean after a fight between the boys.
According to court documents, Letterance Grady is not accused of actually pulling the trigger but prosecutors say he’s still partly responsible for Bean’s death.
Letterance Demont Grady[Hennepin County Sheriff's Office]
5 EYEWITNESS NEWS spoke with community activist K.G. Wilson who says this community needs to see parents step up and play a bigger role in stopping the violence.
"It tears my heart apart. It is horrible. Parents have to really be positive role models for their children," Wilson said.
As an activist, Wilson has been front and center of the push to stop gun violence in the community.
He says change needs to start in the home with parents and he says this incident is another example.
According to court documents, on Sept. 8, there was a physical fight between Bean and Jeremiah Grady’s younger brother before the shooting.
Police say Jeremiah Grady approached from the back of the property, wearing a mask and all black, and began shooting, hitting Bean twice.
He was arrested and charged in Bean’s death.
Soon after, Letterance Grady denied he was there at the time of the shooting.
However, surveillance video showed him driving his son to and from the scene.
During police interviews, Jeremiah Grady told police his father encouraged him to retaliate and told him to shoot from the car.
Wilson said the message to put guns down has to start at home.
"Be positive examples because, as you can see, here we go again this month and in this story, another bad example of a father doing something that misleads a child," Wilson said.
Letterance Grady is set to appear in court Monday.
He’s currently in custody, charged with two counts of second-degree murder.
His bail is set at $1 million.