Happy Endings?

No, not really.  I could make a joke about the death of Demetrius Murphy, but I can agree somewhat with the response of Matt Quain, who had been the victim of Murphy's assault back in October 2011: 

Quain sees what happened to Murphy as part of a circle of violence that needs to be stopped.

“Ya know, I’m not happy that somebody died,” he said Monday.

On the other hand, Murphy, who was 13 at the time that he sucker-punched Quain before beating him with a brick while he lay on the ground, was not too concerned if his actions killed or permanently damaged his victim.  These kids are tribal.  Though I suspect that Demetrius went to a public school, he was not socialized in the same way we were socialized growing up.  He believed that attacking someone not of his tribe was perfectly acceptable. 

The difference between Demetrius Murphy and Trayvon Martin was that Matt Quain was not armed and prepared to defend himself.  What would have been the consequences if Quain had shot and killed an "unarmed" thirteen-year-old child?

I commend Mayor Francis Slay for assisting Matt Quain when he came upon the victim.  It is very reminiscent of the story of the Good Samaritan:

It was back in 2011 that Quain and a friend were walking along Grand, returning from a “beer run” to Schnucks, when they say a group of teens jumped them. Quain was beaten badly, suffering neck injuries and a broken jaw. He was discovered bleeding in the street by Mayor Francis Slay and his security guard. 

I could be wrong about this, but I would not be surprised to learn that Mayor Slay is generally opposed to the citizens of St. Louis carrying weapons.  Mayors, though, have to have security guards.  

It would also be interesting to know the dynamics surrounding the witness who initially identified Murphy as the attacker then "refused to show up in court", causing the case to be dropped.  Had that not happened, Murphy might be alive today.  As it was, he seemed to think himself invincible.