BREAKING NEWS High school football star, 16, dead in New Jersey shooting as family mourn 'tragic accident'
A New Jersey community is in mourning after the shocking death of a 16-year-old high school football star who was shot in the head on Friday night.
Xyere Brooks died in hospital two hours after being shot inside a Camden County house, in what his family have described as a tragic accident.
Investigations are still ongoing into how the incident unfolded, but the victim's brother Manazh Tomkins told 6ABC: 'She put the gun to his head, and I guess she didn't expect it to go off.
'To make a long story short, the gun went off on my brother, and he's no longer here with us.'
Brooks was a sophomore at Kipp High School in Camden, and was a star of the football academy with the likes of Rutgers and Syracuse already taking interest in him, according to his mother Antoinette Brooks.
Speaking to local media, she added: 'These parents that are leaving their unsupervised teenage kids at home and not knowing what they may come into their homes with... there has to be a better way.'
No criminal charges have currently been filed, and the identity of the girl mentioned by Brooks' brother has not been released by cops.
Brooks' school also paid tribute to the 16-year-old in a post on Instagram, alongside which they posted a photo of him on the football field, and one of his first day at school.
'This week, our KCNA community is mourning and honoring the life of KHS Camden sophomore Xyere Brooks.
'Xyere began his journey with us at KIPP Lanning Square Middle as a fifth grader with a smile that could light up a room, a competitive spirit, and the kind of energy that brought joy to every hallway and dance battle.
'At @khscamden, Xyere was a committed student, a loyal and encouraging teammate and friend, and a standout football player whose talent and drive were evident to all who knew him.
'As a forever member of the LSM familia and a proud Titan, Xyere will be deeply missed by everyone who had the privilege of knowing him.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
22 minutes ago
- BBC News
Colin Flatt: Footballer's daughter frustrated by inquest delay
The daughter of a former professional footballer, who died in 2021, said she was "very disappointed" that an inquest into his death had been adjourned for a further 14 Flatt - who played for Southend United, Leyton Orient and Barnet in the 1960s and 70s - died in September 2021, aged eight-day inquest into his death commenced on 9 June, but assistant coroner Tina Harrington ruled that, for legal reasons, it should be heard in front of a jury, with the soonest available date being August Taylor, daughter of Mr Flatt, told Essex Coroner's Court that "words fail me" after the adjournment was announced. 'Reluctant' decision Mr Flatt was described as "forever a Shrimper" in a tribute from the Southend United Ex-Players Association, which said that he scored eight goals in 24 appearances during the 1966-67 also walked out at Wembley in the FA Trophy for Barnet in 1972, and played for other clubs including Taylor expressed her frustration as the inquest into her father's death was delayed for more than a the assistant coroner, she asked: "Is the jury going to make a difference? I don't know. Will the outcome be different to what you would have ruled? I don't know.""It was a delay which could have been avoided."Ms Harrington told Mrs Taylor, "I can only apologise", adding that her decision to adjourn had been a "reluctant" one. Mr Flatt's partner of 20 years, Melanie Leahy, has been one of the driving forces behind the establishment of the Lampard Inquiry into more than 2,000 mental health deaths in Essex between 2000 and 2012, Ms Leahy's son Matthew, 20, died while he was under the care of NHS mental health services in the inquest into Mr Flatt's death is set to resume on 17 August 2026. Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Telegraph
24 minutes ago
- Telegraph
California is losing the court of public opinion
In the on-going Battle of Los Angeles, California governor Gavin Newsom may have the law on his side – but his adversary president Donald Trump has the most powerful imagery. The conflict began in Los Angeles on Friday, when mobs of protestors attacked agents of the US Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE), who were trying to serve warrants on specific illegal immigrants at a Home Depot and also at a clothing store. On Saturday, during a protest in front of a nearby Department of Homeland Security (DHS) office, members of the crowd lit fires and threw rocks at federal officers, who defended themselves with tear gas and non-lethal ammunition. Later that day, president Trump authorised the deployment of 2000 members of the National Guard to protect the federal ICE agents; since then 700 American Marines have been added to the federal force. Governor Newsom and other leaders of the Democratic-dominated California have claimed that Trump's actions were not needed because local and state authorities had the situation under control. And yet on Sunday, following three days of violence and arrests, the Los Angeles Police Department declared downtown Los Angeles an 'unlawful assembly' area. And on Monday the state of California sued the Trump administration, claiming that Trump 'illegally acted to federalise the National Guard,' in the words of Newsom. Typically a governor requests a president to federalise and mobilise the National Guard to deal with riots or natural disasters. For example, consider the Los Angeles riots of 1992. It was sparked by the acquittal of four white police officers who beat a black motorist named Rodney King and it led to more than fifty deaths and a billion dollars of damage; in response a Republican California governor Pete Wilson asked a Republican president George HW Bush to federalise the National Guard. Not since 1965, when president Lyndon B. Johnson sent the National Guard to Alabama to protect civil rights demonstrators, has a president sent troops without a governor's request. While California officials might be able to make a legal case against the Trump administration, the state and the Democratic party risk losing in the court of public opinion. Viral photographs show masked rioters waving Mexican flags in front of burning cars and debris, supporting the Trump White House's inflammatory claims about an immigrant invasion. In a shrewd public relations move, the federal Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has released mug shots under the heading: 'ICE Captures Worst of the Worst Illegal Alien Criminals in Los Angeles Including Murderers, Sex Offenders, and Other Violent Criminals.' The rogues' gallery contains illegal immigrants from a number of countries including Vietnam, the Philippines, and Mexico, charged with offenses including attempted rape, assault with a deadly weapon, grand theft larceny, distribution of heroin and cocaine, wilful cruelty to a child and other serious crimes. Democrats recently succeeded in reversing the allegedly unlawful deportation to El Salvador of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an illegal immigrant from El Salvador who was granted the right to remain in the US by a federal immigration judge. But on his return he was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of being an MS-13 gang member who has smuggled thousands of illegal immigrants, drugs, and firearms in the US. Democratic strategists might ask whether someone like Abrego Garcia should be the face of the Democratic party. At least, unlike some of the rioters cavorting in front of burning wreckage in LA, he does not wear a mask.
The Guardian
25 minutes ago
- The Guardian
PM says journalist's shooting with rubber bullet raised with US; another embryo bungle at Monash IVF; and life behind a beauty counter
Welcome to Afternoon Update. The Los Angeles Police Department has responded to reports of media being hit with rubber bullets while covering protests in LA, saying 'we're very concerned about it and we're looking into that'. Nine's US correspondent Lauren Tomasi was hit with a rubber bullet on Monday and a British news photographer believed he was also likely hit over the weekend with a non-lethal round. Speaking at the National Press Club, Anthony Albanese described the footage, which appears to show an LAPD officer aiming in the direction of Tomasi, as 'horrific'. The prime minister said there was 'no ambiguity' that Tomasi was a reporter, and that the issue has been raised with the US administration. Monash IVF admits second bungled embryo implant, this time at Victorian clinic Erin Patterson denies lying about making herself vomit after fatal mushroom lunch New Zealand government sued over 'dangerously inadequate' emissions reduction plan RFK Jr to remove all members of CDC panel advising on US vaccines Public disorder breaks out in Northern Ireland town Ballymena after alleged sexual assault Israel preparing to deport Gaza aid boat activists, including Greta Thunberg Funk music pioneer Sly Stone has died aged 82. He leaves behind a career filled with influential, experimental and uplifting music that's soundtracked generations of dancefloors. 'If we have another three years like the last six years, the party will disappear.' Intense discussions are under way within the Liberal party about an alternative to the three-person administrative committee now in control of its New South Wales branch. Liberals who spoke to Guardian Australia take us inside the battle for the soul of the party in NSW. Sign up to Afternoon Update Our Australian afternoon update breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion The Climate Council issued the prediction on Tuesday, amid heightened demand for home batteries after the announcement of a $2.3bn federal government scheme to subsidise their purchase by 30% from July. Life outside work can be chaotic and grubby, but things are different behind the beauty counter: its strict code of conduct, its obsession with ritual and its insistence that perfection is possible between the hours of 10 and six. Perhaps you know someone with the same story as Chloe Elisabeth Wilson? Someone who went from casual employee to dedicated, dewy-skinned disciple. Today's starter word is: LIP. You have five goes to get the longest word, including the starter word. Play Wordiply. Enjoying the Afternoon Update? Then you'll love our Morning Mail newsletter. Sign up here to start the day with a curated breakdown of the key stories you need to know, and complete your daily news roundup. And follow the latest in US politics by signing up for This Week in Trumpland.
