JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The mother of a teen suspect is speaking out.
Janice Boothe's son is accused of shooting and killing 17-year-old Malik Warthen inside an Argyle Forest home Saturday.
Police say Malik was playing video games with friends when Michael Saddler put a gun to his head and pulled the trigger.
Full of tears and pain, Boothe spoke with Action News Jax, just two days after she learned her son killed his friend 17-year old Malik Warthen.
“I'm so sorry. Words can't tell you how sorry I am,” Boothe said.
Police say both Warthen and Saddler were inside the home with their friends playing video games when Saddler picked up a gun and shot Warthen in the head, “It's truly an accident that he will remember for the rest of his life and suffer for, for the rest of his life,” Boothe said.
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This is the second shooting in just days, involving young teens.
It’s a trend Pastor John Guns with Operation Save Our Sons says is frustrating, “The value to life or value for life doesn't appear to be there,” Guns said.
Guns says that seems to be the mentality of young teens involved in violence in Jacksonville. That’s why he started his mentoring organization, but he said at times he feels even that’s not enough.
“A lot of times we catch them late, once they get to middle and high school some of them are already in the culture,” Guns said.
Meanwhile, Boothe has this message about the youth violence, “Guns are not toys. They're dangerous, they're weapons and it hurts and it kills,’ Boothe said.
JSO says Saddler is charged with manslaughter and tampering with evidence.
WJAX
