Attorneys working for the Las Vegas teenagers accused in the fatal beating of 17-year-old Jonathan Lewis are claiming self-defense in the case, News 3 reported Friday.
The initial incident happened on November 1, when Lewis was beaten to death by a mob of teenagers 15 blocks away from his school, Rancho High School, according to a Breitbart News report from November 13.
Lewis died days after the brawl occurred.
On Friday, the New York Post shared the suspects’ mugshots and a photo of the victim:
Las Vegas teens accused in beating death of classmate Jonathan Lewis, 17, claim self-defense at hearing https://t.co/pAugZF9wkh pic.twitter.com/U6nP6J0d0c
— New York Post (@nypost) December 15, 2023
The outlet noted that the four teenagers who are facing second-degree murder charges in the case are Damien Hernandez, 17, Dontral Beaver, 16, Gianni Robinson, 17, and Treavion Randolph, 16.
Before the beating, Lewis had stood up for a smaller friend, whom the group had shoved into a trash can.
Video footage shows the group of students swarming what appears to be a person on the ground:
Jonathan Lewis, a teenager, was beaten to death by 15 students at a high school in Las Vegas.
— Mrgunsngear (@Mrgunsngear) November 12, 2023
This is the state of American government schools in 2023...#LasVegas #JonathanLewis #decay #FailedState pic.twitter.com/8iqgYAZjwM
The News 3 article continued:
During a discovery status hearing, Karen Connelly, the defense attorney for Damien Hernandez, claimed self-defense for her client while also detailing how one of the teens involved had a knife. The teen, she explained, was a friend of Jonathan Lewis, who died days later.
…
Hernadez’s attorney, along with attorneys representing Gianni Robinson and Treavion Randolph, requested bail, citing self-defense, lack of criminal history, and the lack of flight risk the teen posed.
“The attorney of Dontral Beaver mentioned not requesting a motion for bail until looking at all of the evidence,” the report added.
Prosecutors wanted $250,000 bail for the teens along with monitoring. However, Judge Nadia Wood will decide on bail in the coming days.
Video footage shows the teenagers’ initial court appearance with their attorneys:
JUST IN: The Las Vegas teens who beat 17 year old Jonathan Lewis to death are claiming they were simply acting in self defense.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) December 15, 2023
9 vs 1 is self defense now?
The teens say Lewis was the one who threw the first punch and are using that to claim they were just defending… pic.twitter.com/d1o7xN8iL4
After Lewis’s death on November 7, his father wrote, “Today at 11:26 a.m., my son was pronounced dead; he will always be so loved; as his dad, I’ll forever hold him in my heart, shine even brighter, love even more, and work all my life to bring peace into this world.”
