8th Grader Shot Dead Outside His Home

Deonte Malone's mom said her son was an innocent, good boy who never got into trouble

Deonte Malone, an eighth grader at Marquette Elementary School, walked out of his apartment at 63rd and California Wednesday afternoon and never returned.

"I raised the blinds up and that's when I saw the little boy laying in the street," said Retha Washington, who lives near West 65th and West Mozart streets. "And I'm like, 'The little boy is dead.'"

She said she thought little of the gunshot she heard outside until she saw police gathering outside minutes later.

"How long he had been laying there, I don't know. But it's sad," she said.

Distraught, Malone's mother described her son as an innocent, sweet boy who never got into trouble. The 15-year-old was looking forward to his first date this weekend, she said.

"I just miss him so much. I wish he could come back," Natalya Malone said through tears.

Community activist Andrew Holmes said his organization, Stop Killing Our Youth, was offering a $1,000 award for information leading to the arrest of the teen's killer.

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