By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2024-12-29 04:19:26 | Updated at 2024-12-30 21:36:22
1 day ago
A white teen accused of attempting to drown his 15-year-old black 'friend' while yelling horrific racial slurs has pleaded guilty.
John Sheeran, now 15, pleaded guilty to charges of attempted murder and assault with a dangerous weapon in a Massachusetts courtroom earlier this week, The Cape Cod Times reported.
The teen was charged as a 'youthful offender,' which grants the judge the option to sentence Sheeran as an adult or a juvenile, under Massachusetts state law.
His sentencing is set for February 5.
The near-fatal drowning took place on July 19, 2023 at Goose Pond in Cape Cod after the unnamed black boy rode a bicycle to the lake to meet up with 'friends,' though the 'friends' had other plans.
Upon arrival the 15-year-old black boy was asked to ride his bike into the lake by his 'friends' before sharing that the bike he used to get there was not his, but his older brother's.
Sheeran allegedly then began to hurl rocks at the black boy sending him for refuge in the water, although he was unable to swim.
John Sheeran, now 15, pleaded guilty to charges of attempted murder and assault with a dangerous weapon in a Massachusetts courtroom earlier this week
The near-fatal drowning took place on July 19, 2023 at Goose Pond (pictured) in Cape Cod after the unnamed black boy rode a bicycle to the lake to meet up with 'friends,' though the 'friends' had other plans
Sheeran repeatedly pushed the black teen underwater, while yelling damning racial slurs calling him a n***** and 'George Floyd' - the Black man killed by a Minneapolis police officer in a 2020 video that sparked protests around the world - all while throwing stones at the struggling teen.
Sheeran also swam underwater to grab the drowning boy by his feet to continue pulling him down as witnesses looked on.
The nearly-drowned teen continued yelling for help before another person on the beach heroically intervened and helped the troubled teen to shore.
'Water went into my mouth and my nose and I could not breathe,' the black teen said in a written statement to police, NBC News reported.
The teen was charged as a 'youthful offender,' which grants the judge the option to sentence Sheeran as an adult or a juvenile, under Massachusetts state law. His sentencing is set for February 5
'So I shouted out that I couldn't breathe over and over and tried to get his hand off me.'
Cape and Island District Attorney Robert Galibois believes the 2023 attack was racially motivated as another boy has since been accused of harassing the black teen as well.
Sheeran's attorney has tried to excuse his client's actions claiming the attempted drowning was 'stupid' and 'carried way too far.'
'I can assure you, at this point, this young man had absolutely no intent to murder his friend. It was a stupid act that was carried way too far,' Kevin Reddington said during the hearing in September, according to WCVB.
