Anger, grief run strong at Minneapolis vigil for slain 12-year-old

As homicide detectives pressed their investigation Thursday into the death of 12-year-old London Bean, several dozen mourners gathered at the north Minneapolis corner where he was shot to vent their anger and plead for help in finding his killer.

London was killed after getting into a fight with another boy Wednesday afternoon outside an apartment building at N. 8th and Aldrich avenues, in the Heritage Park complex. As the fight continued, witnesses told police, the other boy's brother came around the north side of the building with a gun and fired several rounds at London.

As the suspected shooter fled, he fired at a blue SUV parked nearby, narrowly missing a woman and her teenage daughter inside, police said.

London was taken to an area hospital, where he died.

A day later, detectives continued their search for the teenager they believe is responsible, using witness information. As of late Thursday, no one was in custody.

A preliminary investigation suggests that the shooting was the result of a neighborhood dispute, not the bitter and bloody gang feuding that authorities say is responsible for many of the area's shootings. But, police and community members said, the result was no less tragic.

On the same block Thursday, two neighbors — one a young boy no older than London — described witnessing the fight between London and the other boy. Neither saw the shooting but remembered its chaotic aftermath as the corner was flooded with police and paramedics.

The sound of gunfire startled Carolyn Honeycutt, who went out onto her patio to investigate. She saw London lying in the grass — a sight that triggered memories of her own son, Deshaun, who was gunned down in Racine, Wis., three years ago. Overcome by grief, Honeycutt stood frozen. Once back inside, she broke down crying, she recounted Thursday.

"I couldn't do nothing for him besides just pray to God; I didn't realize he was that young, but it doesn't matter — nobody deserves to die," said Honeycutt, who came to Thursday's vigil in a T-shirt bearing a photo of Deshaun. "Yesterday, this brought all the pain back to me."

Myra Cain was out walking in the area with a friend earlier in the day Wednesday when they heard gunshots. After the shooting, she said, her phone began blowing up with "Girl, you OK?" texts from friends who knew that she lived nearby.

At the memorial, she said she hopes London's family will get justice — starting with the arrest of the suspected shooter, but also anyone found to be harboring him.

Like many other U.S. cities, Minneapolis has seen a sharp increase in homicides amid the COVID-19 pandemic and unrest in the wake of the murder of George Floyd. A growing number of victims — and some suspects — have been children. Police data show 41 children under 18 have been struck by gunfire so far this year — seven of them fatally.

The rising violence has emerged as a key issue in the upcoming elections, when voters will decide on whether to replace the city's embattled police force. Thursday's vigil, which at times took on a political tone, was held across the street from where London was shot.

After a moment of silence and prayer, speakers from Mayor Jacob Frey to state Sen. Bobby Joe Champion took turns demanding an end to the gun violence.

Longtime community organizer Al Flowers said the debate about the future of policing is distracting people from the fact that the city's Black residents are suffering the most from crime.

"We can't have 12-year-old babies getting killed — this is uncalled for," he said, arguing that many of those who oppose working with police to fight crime don't live in the most affected areas.

Champion, whose family still has deep roots on the North Side, said he is usually reluctant to speak at vigils, because "elected officials sometimes use it to promote their own political agenda."

But he said he felt the need to speak up this time because "this problem requires hands on deck in order to be solved — not some, not those we like — all hands."

"London was not my child, but he was our child," he said.

When it came her turn to speak, London's mother said amid tears that she was too upset to do so. She eventually walked over to where the speakers had been standing and stood sobbing as several people prayed over her.

Staff writer Alex Chhith contributed to this report.

Libor Jany • 612-673-4064