Did you ever think of what you “could have” said differently that “would have” altered the consequent events? The momentary wrath on the tip of your tongue can have more catastrophic repercussions.
This case is a testament that it takes a village to raise a child, but what if the village carries a generational trauma? The result is an innocent 14-year-old who has to bear the weight of taking a life.
What really happened on the unfateful day of 18 June?
Stage 1: What Did Carlisha Hood Do?
Carlisha Hood, a 35-year-old woman, parked her car at the Maxwell Street Express in Southside, Chicago, Illinois. She was standing in line to pick up her order at the restaurant. There she encounters a man, leading to a verbal altercation. The man, now identified as Jeremy Brown by one of the witnesses, was aggressively threatening Carlisha. She argued back with him, but her demeanor can be perceived as calmer than his as she had her hands folded most of the time.
The viral video circulating on the internet starts with Brown being extremely aggressive while Hood retaliates. The final straw begins with him saying, “Get Your Food…and you say one more thing, I am gonna knock you out.”
What did Carlisha Hood do? — she argued with the stranger who was being verbally aggressive with her. The point to be noted is that she had the absolute right to argue back. Even though the events leading up to this escalation are unknown, it seems both parties were engaging in a heated argument. Meanwhile, you can also see Brown’s girlfriend laughing at the scene instead of pulling her boyfriend back.
WHAT COULD HAVE CARLISHA DONE DIFFERENTLY?
Understandably, you want to stand up for yourself. But given the circumstances of an unstable and disgruntled man charging at you, backing off a bit could have been a more intelligent choice than arguing with a fool.
Stage 2: What Did The Man Do?
After the ultimatum, the man pounds Hood in the face first, followed by a couple more punches. Carlisha is seen texting someone on her phone while being assaulted by Brown.
Jeremy Brown, a 32-year-old man, thought it was more appropriate to “put-a-woman-in-her-place” because he was entitled to his superiority. His girlfriend not only condoned this behavior but also revealed an ugly truth of their relationship; who knows whether he displays the same violent pattern with her? (these are just presumptions).
Regardless, raising hands on any woman is straight-up punishable by offense, given that she did not initiate a physical altercation in any way.
WHAT COULD HAVE JEREMY DONE DIFFERENTLY?
Control his temper. That’s it. In a social setup, no level of anger should be an excuse to hit someone. And this was not just a normal beating; he pounded the woman with all his might. This display of toxic masculinity was nothing short of masking one’s insecurities with an inflated ego. His girlfriend’s laugh was an accessory to this violence.
Stage 3: What Did The 14-year-old Boy Do?
After a few seconds of the assault, a young boy is caught on CCTV entering the restaurant. He pulls out a gun and shoots at Jeremy. With one shot in his back, Jemermy tries to flee from the scene. But the boy is seen chasing him out and shooting the gun two more times until Jeremy is dead.
It is suspected that Carlisha texted her son to bring out the gun from the car and shoot Jeremy.
WHAT COULD HAVE THE BOY DONE DIFFERENTLY?
An eye for an eye makes the world blind. One gunshot was enough to stop the brawl if he wanted to defend his mother. But he went on to “finish the job,” which changed the discourse.
However, the boy is not to be blamed in this situation. The adults have failed him in this circumstance.
What Really Happened?
Both Carlisha Hood and her minor son have been charged with first-degree murder. Carlisha was also charged with “pursuading a minor to commit a murder.”
She was remanded in custody with a bond of $3 Million, and her son was placed in Cook County Juvenile custody.
During the bond hearing on Thursday, Judge Barbara Dawkins stated her judgment as follows–
“The threat at that point was over. Things can bear themselves out differently at trial, but that, at that point, was not defense of others. That was first-degree murder,” implying that the aggravated shooting is what pushes the case off the edge.
Further, the court documents also alleged that Carlisha instructed her son to shoot the witness. She even took the gun from him at one point but was quickly met with resistance. Thereafter, the duo got in the car and fled the crime scene.
After the proceedings, the charges were dropped against Carlisha and her on 26 June.
The Underlying Issue In The Incident
After the three prominent people involved in the case, another character had a vital role in this escalation– it’s the city of Chicago itself!
There are 1 in 115 chances to be a victim of violent crime in Chicago, with a Total Crime Index of just 9% (100 being the safest).
Coming back to the “it takes a village ot raise a kid” — the violent neighborhoods and lack of proper patrolling have perpetuated an increasing crime rate in Chicago. More often, minors are involved in the crime, mostly as victims.
The Jason Reynolds novel Long Way Down highlights the issue of minors being groomed to partake in gun violence.
There is also the factor that children are a mirror of their parents, guardians, surroundings, and influences. The boy held a gun to protect his mother. This infers that he must have previously experienced brutality up close, thus resorting to extreme violence himself.
The only way to rectify this concerning pattern of generational trauma in the neighborhood is education, strict law enforcement for crimes against women, and regular neighborhood vigilance.
What are your opinions on this case? Do you think Carlisha should be punished? Should the boy be considered a murderer? Why did Jeremy display such rage fit towards a woman?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
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