DONKEY: 15-Year-Old To Be Charged As An Adult After Mass Shooting

SPEAKER_1 (0:12)

That's pretty fun.

Charlamagne Tha God (0:13)

Charlamagne the devil?

DJ Envy (0:17)

The Breakfast Club.

Charlamagne Tha God (0:19)

Actually, no, never mind. Donkey of the Day for Wednesday, October 28th goes to 15-year-old Anthony Rivers III of Tallahassee, Florida. Anthony is the person accused of opening fire near Florida A&M University's homecoming celebration, leaving 11 people with gunshot wounds. Six of those victims were minors. The youngest was just 11 years old.

HBCU homecomers are supposed to be a safe space. And anybody who violates the sanctity of that safe space should be punished to the fullest extent of the law, okay, regardless of their age. Police say the shooting followed a physical altercation and the people who got shot weren't even the intended targets. That's usually how it happens. Let's go to WCTV Eyewitness News for the report, please.

SPEAKER_1 (1:03)

We're gonna get started with that FAMU shooting.

And this is the person accused in the FAMU homecoming shooting from this weekend. At just 15 years old, Anthony Rivers III had his first court appearance this morning. He's now facing 11 counts of attempted second degree murder. RJ. Harrison was in the courtroom this morning and joins us live to tell us the latest. What do you know, Jay?

Jessica Moore (1:26)

Yeah, that's right, Rob. Rivers appeared in juvenile court today, but is officially being charged as an adult, according to state attorney Jack Campbell. He's being held at the Leon County Juvenile Assessment Center and is now facing up to life in prison for those charges. Now, a judge ordered that he be held there until paperwork can be finalized to have him transferred to the adult detention center. Campbell confirmed that Rivers is classified as a, quote, delinquent under the court system, but couldn't go into detail about his criminal history. We also asked about how Rivers managed to escape the scene and if there may be any other suspects. Campbell said he could not give those details out right now. He says they're now in the process of trying to connect with any witnesses that were there and could have any valuable information.

Charlamagne Tha God (2:10)

What did your uncle Charla always say about the great state of Florida? The craziest people in America come from the Bronx and all of Florida. Some say the only thing crazier than a Florida man is a Florida YN. 15 years old, facing 11 counts of attempted 2nd degree murder, and prosecutors intend to try him as an adult. I know that's going to start a conversation because he's only 15

People are going to talk about his age, his upbringing, his environment, whether his brain is fully developed, and whether he deserves another chance. Those are all legitimate conversations. But I have a question. Why do we spend so much time worrying about the childhood of the person accused of pulling the trigger, that we risk forgetting about the childhoods of the people who got shot? Age ain't nothing but a number. This is what your parents are warning you about when they say, you want to act grown? You want to be out here acting grown? You're going to have to deal with these grown consequences. Anthony is 15, but one of the victims was 11 Eleven years old. That child should be worried about homework and what they're going to be for Halloween not recovering from a gunshot wound. Listen, I know this situation can elicit a plethora of emotions, but the reality is you can be a child and still be responsible for destroying somebody else's childhood. I believe in rehabilitation.

I understand that a 15-year-old's brain isn't fully developed, but you don't need a fully developed brain to understand that shooting somebody can kill them. And somewhere along this yellow brick road of life, we started confusing understanding someone's circumstances with excusing their behavior. Two things can be true. You can be a child who needs help and still be a child who needs to face serious consequences. You can believe in rehabilitation without minimizing the suffering of victims. I don't know Anthony's upbringing. I don't know what he's been exposed to. And I'm not going to make up stories of a troubled childhood to explain what he's accused of doing. But if these allegations are proven, whatever circumstances led him to that moment does not erase the harm he caused. And this all started because of a physical altercation.

I was born in 1978 and my whole life, since I was a young lad, they would tell us to learn to use our hands, put the guns down and fight. Did you not watch the movie Friday? Y'all thought Friday was just a comedy, when in reality, it delivered some of the best social commentary on gun violence. Let's listen.