Aaron Shannon Jr., 5

May God bless the soul of little Aaron, what a beautiful child he was. My heart breaks for his mother and the rest of the Shannon family. I don't want to even imagine how painful this is for you.

To the enablers of the creatures that killed this child: I hope you witnessed their arrests and I wish LAPD could arrest you too. I hope you sobbed loudly when they locked them up and I hope they are sent to a dark, dungeon of a prison so far away from you that you can't see them anymore. I hope they lock them up in a cell with the Mexican Mafia or the Neo-Nazi’s while the guards simply walk away. I don't want to see your mugs on TV claiming they are victims of a racist system or that your "boy go to school and he ain't in no gang." I despise you for not educating your children properly and not teaching them compassion and to have respect for laws. I despise you for not teaching them to have a work ethic and I despise you for not remembering your ancestors who endured so much so you and your evil spawn could have a better life. I don't know you personally but I know your type.

My deepest condolences to the Shannon Family. I'm so sorry.
Rest in peace little angel.

To Aaron’s family, I cannot express how sorry I am that you are going through this.

This murder has affected me like no other on this blog which is saying something as I actually knew a previous HR victim. I can’t understand how a human could get into position and take aim to shoot an innocent child. These pieces of excrement have earned the right to spend the rest of their lives behind bars.

I hope the citizens in this community will use this murder as the impetuous to fight back. This time don’t go back to life as usual. Please, please don't let these useless, uneducated, baggy-pants wearing clowns claim another child's life. Call the cops and report every crime you see, big or small.

Take notice of license plates and physical descriptions. Most of all, keep an eye on your own children to make sure they don’t hang out with such vermin. Please don’t let Aaron die in vain.

I hope the LAPD and LASD will use this tragedy to sweep over this neighborhood and others to round up all the other potential murderous gang members BEFORE another Aaron Shannon is killed. Bring in the National Guard if need be, if this isn’t an emergency then what is?

RIP to the young brother who never had the opportunity to contribute to society. And to those wondering why the Chickens stay gettin they hats handed to them on the east side all i can say is karma is a bitch. I knew the chickens was in funnystyle mode when they hit up next to the flowers on hooper even when they stay crossin out C's! what kind of reptible crip does that?? or kills innocent kids? exactly! And the chickens wonder why they never got any love/respect on the east side.Thats why we always clown em ever since BLUE RAG called em (97 Chickens) on that ole school Steady Dippin video! yall some jokes!!!

Wake up black & brown people!! It's a war against US AND WE'RE LOSING THE BATTLE.....Hate Crimes against eachother!!

My deepest condolence, and prayers go out to little Aarons parents, and family. This case really saddens me to know that a child could loose his life so early just running, and playing in the backyard, and how his family could be violently attacked just relaxing in the backyard, a place that should be a safety net from the streets, just because of two cold-hearted monsters feel the need to go out and kill anyone they see for the benefit of a stupid gang, or a neighborhood they don't own.

I just wonder how many of their home-boys from the hood will help do some of the 130 yrs they'll, or actually come out to visit them in prison while they're doing that 130 yrs plus in prison; I'm sure not a single one will visit, so how much loyalty do their hood buddies have for them, and I'm sure prison will not be a peaceful place for them when word get out that they killed a 5 yr old child. COWARDS!!

OMG another baby taken !!!!!!
R.i.P lil fella
it's very sad how south L.A is neva gonna change ,the reputation is not something any American should be proud of how come the U.S government be at war in Iraq when theres a war going on in L.A
damnn gangbangers gun slingers what ever you call yourselves drop the weapons i know for a fact dead hommies aint coming back so stop taking hits on their behalves
but i pray who eva took this baby should pay L.A.P.D do something ,LA as a community do something get out there protest or something unless you stand up this is not going to stop
until when are black people kill each other???? shall crips and bloods / latino gangs keep terrorizing South Los Angeles ?????????????????????/

RIP sweet child.

As I watched the News and saw little Aaron standing there with his costume on posing for pictures, I felt so heartbroken I cried. It is uncomprehendable to believe that a simple act of relaxing on a Sunday afternoon in your own yard could lead to such horror and pain. A little child who just wanted to show his costume off to his family has been murdered. Anyone who hurts or kills children are monsters. My deepest condolences go out to the Shannon Family. I will keep little Aaron in my prayers.

This tragic and senseless murder hurts my soul. No words can describe how much this hurts me. Anytime innocent kids lose there lives to gang violence it hurts bad. There use to be an unspoken rule in the hood that when kids are around all bets are off. That's crazy to say but back in the 1990's if you grew up in the hood surrounded by gangs you heard of this rule. Some may say that sounds crazy but that's how it goes in the hood. I'm not condoning it, it is what it is. I'm a child of God and ima pray for the family in hopes that God ease there pain. Ima also pray for the one's responsiable for this senseless act in hopes that God touch their heart, and they turn their lives around. They will be judge and punished no doubt. Gods sees and know everything. I know in my heart that whoever is responsiable for this will have to answer to God. We all need to pray for world peace and teach our young people that God is real and he can turn their lives around. Call God He's avaliable on a daily basis morning, noon, and night. This is the only way these senseless acts will cease if we all ask God for help. He answer prayers no doubt. To the family may God cont. to bless you. Remember weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning. ONE!

keepin it real,ur right that was an unspoken rule,no kids,no mothers or old folks..now,man they dont respect nothing,not even their mommas.this young boys death is a tragedy.im praying for the family.this is all bad,we as a people need to start regaining our character.may GOD BLESS the family&keep them,hold them and comfort them......

No words can explain this, i cried. This can be fixed in highschool and with more tutors and motivational speakers at a young age. Gang injunctions work like a charm, look what happened to Avenues. Please... more gang injunctions, stop using murders are political ploys. Hit the hard spots, hard, fast, and deep.

This is sad, yet not any different than Johannesburg, Sao Paulo, or Monterrey. The problem with out of control murders, violence, and crime is not an Indo-European problem.

My prayers go to Aaron and the Shannon Family. I am deeply saddened by what happened. sending my prayers and Love to the family and little Angel. Rest in peace Aaron.

RIP little one, there are no words to express the sorrow I feel for the family and others who have lost a loved one to this cowards.

where is the community outrage?...oh I forgot a cop didn't shoot and kill Lil Aaron Shannon, Jr, a coward gang retard did. Let's see how your rep goes up for slaughtering an innocent baby...I have no sympathy when it comes to gang bangers. Zilch.

This is directed to the "leaders" of the Black community: The Black community no longer respects the political and religious leaders of Los Angeles because no one ever sponsors a protest about the "Black-on-Black" homicides that have wiped out so many lives. As my friends say, black gangs have put the Klan and the Nazis out of business because we (Blacks)kill each other at a higher rate than the Klan ever imagined. And it is not only homicides; gangs discourage, initimidate, and frustrate peope who want to achieve academic success, damage homes and other personal property; things that the Klan used to always do. The LA Times is complicit in this tragedy as well. The LA Times never holds politicians accountable for their complete abdication of leadership; you (Times) can become relevant as a newspaper if you report what is important to the everyday lives of residents. I am very upset about the lack of outrage by your newspaper. You need to be a leader in changing the mindset of the community. I am sure your business will rise if you act as a leader.

May this little ANGEL REST IN PEACE..and may god bless this family..The loss of someone who means the world to you is not easy this men should be in jail at NO BAIL.... its sad how people cant play with their kids outside because its DANGEROUS..CHILDREN HAVE THE RIGHT TO PLAY FREE WITH NO FEAR OF THE VIOLENCE IN THE STREETS. GANG MEMBERS CONVICTED OF MURDER SHOULD BE PUT IN JAIL AT NO BAIL..WHEN WILL VIOLENCE GO AWAY SO OUR LITTLE ONE COULD PLAY WITHOUT FEAR???

There are no words, just tears; tears for lost hope, lost joy, lost potential...the insanity continues...our people are lost, our children are lost; lost to a generational curse and until we stand up as a people and not only say stop but do something about the monsters who are living among us, this insanity will continue and the curse will never be broken.

God bless your soul Aaron, and Im sorry to the Sahannon family. It breaks my heart to see such a beautiful soul taken away like this. You can see the goodness pouring out of this boys eyes. I have kids too and I do not know what I would do. Rest in peace papo.

Two cowardly criminals pulled the trigger; but Aaron was killed by a society that is awash in guns--legal and illegal.

The NRA and the Republican Party are two additional gangs that have terrorized Los Angeles and the entire country. (With some help from some Democrats, of course.) They are really no better than the street gangs, as they are just as narcissistic and cowardly as the gangbangers.

Rest in peace little one. May you find it in your heart to forgive us all.

Aaron Shannon Jr. , the 5- year-old shot & killed on Halloween, felt like open-heart surgery . . . with a chain saw. It's especially painful, as teacher in a Black high school, when I see the absolute stupidity and criminal disregard for the quality and spirituality of the students that are pushed through our educational system. Our Black schools breed the hip-hop, "gangsta." cowardly, moronic, greedy, murderous, psychopathic, young people that will inherit what's left of our country. Until Black parents demand an educational system based on the character of the child, not on test scores; until black parents take back, by whatever means necessary, the money-grabbing youth sub-human, sub-culture that poisons our children, nothing will change. And Aaron Shannon's murder will have taught us nothing.

My heartfelt prayers to Aarons family and to the cowards who murdered this child may you rot in hell forever because that is directly where you are going with the rest of the scum you hang with.

— Tom, can you explain why the city I live in has plenty of firearms and little crime?

You have to abandon your misguided attempt at blaming the NRA for the social failings of a few neighborhoods and cultures.

The blame falls completely on the gangsters, their enablers and the elected officials of these neighborhoods. Not on the law abiding people who don't subscribe to violence and mayhem.

— Lee, a teacher ...... that's an interesting perspective you have. Please tell us more about this culture of destruction you observe every day in the schools. Do any of the students talk about these homicides? Do any of them read the HR?

I read on italian newspaper. I'm very sorry for this poor child and his family: I hope killers will burn in hell.

Growing up in South Central Los Angeles has allowed me to see many things that do not happen in Wealthy neighborhoods. For example a little 5 year old innocent kid getting murdered in their own parents backyard by gangsters. Time after time I cannot or never will I get use to hearing of little innocent kids getting murdered.

Anoither life taken away from his love ones, why? Wake up community because the time is near for you all to wake up and stop sleeping. The gangs do not control the sidewalks of jungle. The young African American child gone too soon, but only the lord knows why. Fear also denied freedom to the slavery era, but not the civil rights movement. Community you can stop the MADNESS TODAY.

— Calvin; its useless to say "wake up" to these communities. They know full well what is happening.

They also show a collective insanity by electing the same officials and following the same leaders year after year after year after year; yet expecting things will be different.

Nothing is going to change unless there is a sea change in the attitudes of the people who live in these killing fields.

Hey Tom, that's a ridiculous poorly substantiated post. Aaron wasn't killed by "a society that is awash in guns." He was brutally murdered by the gang banging garbage that this city is awash in. Your vitriolic spewing hatred of the NRA and the Republican Party is unsubstantiated hogwash. How dare you equate Republicans, most of whom seem to be responsible principled people with these shaved head pants dragging on the ground gutter trash. Let me go out on a limb and take a guess as to where your hatred of Republicans and other responsible members of society comes from: You're probably one of the approximately 30% of our society that lives off the system, receives housing assistance and 'earned income' tax credits and the like and still complains that rich people are holding you down. Get a life, dude. The time is coming where you will have to pull your own weight and stop leaching off the productive members of society. Oh and by the way, the vast majority of gun owners are law abiding citizens who would only shoot another man if that man was threatening himself or others. Guns don't kill anyone; it's the evil criminal punks that kills innocents like this poor child. Rest in peace, Aaron and my condolences to his family.

-Jim…since when are politicians ever held accountable??? In addition, the (Times) responsibility is to report the news, not become some moral/social leader. It’s the community and law enforcement agencies that need to set higher standards to prevent these crimes.

My sincere condolescences to the family for the loss of this precious, innocent baby. My love to all of you because my family and I have experienced this same heartbreak after our baby was murdered 3 years ago.

Rest in peace sweet baby.

--La Sundra

Taylor . . . what I meant to say is that the reporters know that the politicians who are elected "leaders" of these communities do not truly care for these communities (e.g., Yvonne Burke never lived in the 2nd District, she lived in Brentwood; Bernard Parks moved into the Baldwin Hills to run for the City Council; Mark Ridley-Thomas has not done anything for the area he represents going back to the days when he was a council member). Although the LA Times did not really break the story on Bell, once the story did break, now you know the rest of the story. Newspapers complain that the public won't buy or read their papers. The public would buy if the papers reported on accountability rather than political expediency. 99% of the public is made up of generally decent people who simply want clean and quiet neighborhoods. If the newpapers got to learn their community and reported what was actually happening, there would be a genuine interest. It just seems that we have to come to accept less from everyone.

ive read the h.r since it became public and on this tragedy,ive seen the most post both negative and positive,that actually if put together,makes alot of senceI think the criminals should be hung.accountability lies in all of us that are sic and tired of being sic and tired.if we post here we need to come together and voice our concerns to the elected officials,community leaders,school bourd and churches.we can all point the finger,but what that does is devide and conquer.we can agree to disagree if we land on common ground.this is a real tragedy and if we only meet here on this site,then thats where it stays.all of your voices need to be heard in los angeles and abroad.its time we stop blogging and start moving and shaking in the community.may GOD give the family srength and keep giving you all the courage to post......we should get together sometime and make a difference.........

wow,jus posted yesterday and woke up to the news...A 14yr old gunned down in long beach.another unintended target of gang members.what the hell is going on?parents grab your children and get them on the right path.and those of you that kno or think you kno your child is gangbangin,please snatch that a*# up and nip it in the bud.too many kids dying on both ends of this.i kno lil aaron wished someones poarents wouldve snatch the gunmen who took his life up long ago.if u allow your child to bang,you are giving them permission to kill or die for nothing.

I dont know where to start, but I will start by thanking all of u that have sent ur words of encouragment to the family. I'm Aaron Sr's brother & Lil Aaron's uncle Derryl, right now I have a lot of pain & anger in my heart about this but knowing that these punks are in jail takes a lot of it away but also knowing my nephew wont have an opportunity to grow up sickens me. This past monday I woke up and had my lil brother on my mind because I was thinking of how he felt knowing that his son was really gone! No more getting him ready for school, making breakfast for him or the morning conversations on the way to school. I cried most of the day just thinking about how he felt losing his only child. Please continue to pray for us all as a family and community, I know I'll never ever forgive these bustas only time will tell. I have a lot more I wanna say but I'll be back yall PEACE

@boondoxsaint: I have to agree with you, the time for action is now, no more just reading the HR and shaking your head in dismay. When I read about young Aaron's death I immediately phoned Councilwoman's Jan Perry's office to demand a reward be offered to find the killers. Like you boondoxsaint I was also saddened to hear that a young boy was killed in his own home in Long Beach apparently because an older brother with alleged gang ties used to live there. THIS MUST STOP, OUR CHILDREN HAVE A RIGHT TO BE SAFE IN THEIR OWN HOMES AND YARDS!! I urge you HR readers, no I beg you to please contact your city and state officials, contact both of your U.S. Senators and President Obama too, today!!! DEMAND that they do something now to curb these gang members so are children can be free again to play at home, in parks and just to grow up. We owe it to Aaron, the 14-year old in Long Beach and all the other children as well. We owe it to ourselves as well. United we are strong and powerful. Google lacity.org, ca.gov, feinstein.senate.gov, boxer.senate.gov, whitehouse.gov. I think a march on City Hall or the state capitol in Sacramento might be in order as well. As good parents and citizens we can't allow the children of the useless, absent, uncaring parents bring harm to our families. I'm sorry about the long, preachy statements, please forgive me, but I am really, really tired of reading about young children being killed by gang members and I guess just tired of all the killing!

noelle justice,im with you there.the long preach statement is a well needed one.facts are facts,until we start demanding them to do something they will continue to sweep it under the rug.oh,unless its politically motivated.only time we see our leaders come out is when its a photo op.we the community need to start governing those who govern us.when our cable acting funny we are on the phone raising hell,so why not raise hell to start changing the way our commuity is delt with.parents to political leaders,church goers to church leaders,we as a community must demand our safe streets.if this was brentwood itll be a mad out cry,but we live here so lets make some noise........R.I.P lil aaron and ill continue to pray for your family......

— boondoxsaint ..... if change is needed, then it sure wasn't shown on election day.

One thing that should be done is for the religious leaders of these neighborhoods to start shunning these psychopaths. Let them know their lifestyle is the work of the devil. Let them know they are unwelcome in the churches until they change their evil ways.

Let them know they are not going to heaven and for their families to stop deceiving themselves that they will.

There is no doubt this story was heart breaking. I am a mother and I can’t imagine the pain you went through when your son passed away.Children all over the world look forward for this day and there shouldn’t be any reason why it should end as a tragedy especially since he was an innocent little boy of only five years old. I am glad to know that the people who did this are paying for what they have done but i know that this can't redeem what has happened.This world is a cruel world our children shouldn't pay for the wrong doings of others. May God Bless You And Your Family. Rest In Peace Aaron.

RIP little Aaron. My heart goes out to your family and friends at this time of great sorrow.

gangstas suck big time. How many more of these types are out there? Aaron was shot and killed at the same time my 4 year old was also getting ready for halloween. Peace Aaron. Gangstas suck.

black people in LA is time to say: enough!

wake up everyone a bullet does not know color . And yes your lil baby would do such parents please hard as it may be if you have a soul please turn your childre in if you know they are worthless gangbangers would I DAM RIGHT unless you to are just as worthless they are lost without help to leave the gang they to shall then we will see you on tv my baby my baby but it was your BABY that took so many innocent lives WAKE UP PEOPLE IF YOU RAISED AN ANIMAL PUT IT IN THE CAGE