Published Sunday, May 30, 1999 Jeremy Farrand was shot at about 1 a.m. and died of a single shotgun blast to the right neck and shoulder area, an autopsy showed, said Sharon police. He was pronounced dead at the scene by Mercer County Coroner J. Bradley McGonigle.
Jeremy, a Sharon High eighth-grader, and three other teens who lived in the home in Sharon were watching television a little before 1 a.m. Saturday when they heard the back storm door open, said Police Chief Raymond C. Greene.
"Jeremy got up to see who was coming in," Greene said.
The other teens, two boys and a girl, heard a shot and saw Jeremy drop to the floor.
"We believe the doors were unlocked and whoever entered the home just opened the door," Greene said.
Police were responding to a report of shots fired when they found Jeremy in an inside doorway. The weapon, believed to be a 12-gauge shotgun, had not been found.
Authorities had no suspects and continued their investigation Saturday afternoon.
Greene said police are "pretty sure" the shooting was not a random act of violence. He would not elaborate but did say that whoever shot Jeremy fired the gun and left immediately.
Jeremy was a son of Dan and Annette Farrand; he had been living at 575 Prindle St. with his mother for a few months, said his aunt, Jane Lightbody of Masury.
Besides Jeremy and his mother, it was unclear who else lived in the rust-colored, four-bedroom house at Prindle and Spruce, Greene said. It is owned by Joseph Toth of Farrell and was being rented by Catherine Fansler, he said.
The bicycle left leaning against the back steps belonged to a 15-year-old friend who was spending Friday night with Jeremy, his best friend.
A man at the scene identified himself as that boy's father, but asked that his name not be published because he feared for his son's life.
The man said his son told him the gun sounded like a firecracker.
Jeremy was a typical boy who liked to ride his bike and be outdoors, Mrs. Lightbody said.
Though he was troubled during the past year over his father's illness, "he did nothing to deserve this,'' Mrs. Lightbody said at the scene. Jeremy's father is in a physical rehabilitation clinic in Pittsburgh.
Jeremy's mother Annette called her sister at 3:30 a.m. Saturday with the news.
"She was real hysterical but didn't have any details,'' Mrs. Lightbody said, breaking down. "She just said he was gone.''
Though some of the neighbors slept through the incident, one woman said she heard Mrs. Farrand screaming outside at about 1:45 a.m.
"This isn't a surprise to anyone in the neighborhood,'' she said, adding that while she wasn't surprised she did think it was an isolated case. "This was something that was waiting to happen.''
Caprice Lawrence of Farrell, a friend of Jeremy's sister Danette, grouped the shooting with headline-making violence. "What can you do in this day and age? It's like a fad now.''
She described Jeremy as a "cool, down-to-earth kid. ... He was hyper but you can't justify this.''
Alonzo Scott, 29, who lives at 624 Prindle, was awakened by what he called a "pat-pat'' and then a "boom'' which he said shook his headboard. "It sounded like somebody shooting ... but it could have been a firecracker,'' he said. "It was kind of strange."
"It's terrible,'' he said. "This is a good neighborhood. I don't even know why it happened.''
Other neighbors speculated about why it happened; however, they would talk only on condition of anonymity. "People don't want to get blown away,'' one man said.
"Everybody knew what was going on there,'' he continued. "Drugs were right out in the open.''
"Everybody knew it was a crack house,'' another neighbor said. "Why can't landlords be responsible for any of this stuff? They don't listen to the neighbors.''
Police said they couldn't confirm those reports but did say there were noise complaints about the house.
Police canvassed the neighborhood Saturday.
The nonprofit Crime Solvers is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of those responsible. Call 347-HELP; callers can remain anonymous and still be eligible for a cash reward.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
