A 17-year-old boy was brutally attacked and killed in the parking lot of LeBron James’ I Promise School in Akron, Ohio, on Thursday night.
According to WOIO-TV in Cleveland, Akron police were called about a fight at the school around 10:45 p.m. When they arrived, they found Ethan Liming unconscious on the ground.
Police said at least three other males were playing basketball when Liming and some of his friends arrived in the parking lot. The two groups began fighting, police said. They did not say what started the altercation.
As the fight escalated, Liming’s friends called 911, WOIO reported. Police rushed to the scene, where they found the teenager “knocked unconscious and brutally assaulted.”
Despite officers’ efforts, Liming was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Summit County Medical Examiner’s Office said the death had been ruled a homicide.
Death of teen who was beaten near I Promise School ruled homicide https://t.co/LCvsviS3oL
— fox8news (@fox8news) June 6, 2022
The LeBron James Family Foundation addressed the incident on Twitter.
“Our community is everything to us,” the foundation said in a statement. “We were devastated to learn of the overnight incident that saw a life lost near our school. We are grieving with our community over another senseless act of violence.
“Our @IPROMISESchool campus is safe and secure as we continue to do everything we can to support our students, families, and the entire Akron community.”
(2/2) Our @IPROMISESchool campus is safe and secure as we continue to do everything we can to support our students, families, and the entire Akron community. 💚
— LeBron James Family Foundation (@LJFamFoundation) June 3, 2022
James also addressed the incident with a tweet.
“Our condolences goes out to the family who lost a loved one!!” he said. “My the heavens above watch over you during this tragedy! Pray for our community!”
Our condolences goes out to the family who lost a loved one!! My the heavens above watch over you during this tragedy! Pray for our community! 💚👑 https://t.co/bpq5qsoNfO
— LeBron James (@KingJames) June 3, 2022
The I Promise School has students from third to seventh grade, WOIO reported. It is a part of the Akron Public School District, where Liming was a student.
In a statement obtained by the outlet, Akron Public Schools Superintendent Christine Fowler Mack said Liming attended Firestone Community Learning Center, where he was a rising senior and a leader in the Academy of Design.
Firestone student-athlete Ethan Liming was beaten to death on June 2nd at the I Promise School in Akron.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Akron Police Department Detective Bureau at 330-375-2490 or the Summit County Crimestoppers at 330-434-COPS.#JusticeForEthan pic.twitter.com/FAAEPAawvN
— N.E.O. Zone HS Sports (@NEOZoneHS) June 5, 2022
“The death of a student affects all of Akron Public Schools,” Mack said. “Ethan’s passing is, sadly, one of many we have experienced during this school year.
“May we all pause a moment from our daily pressures to give thanks for the lives of these children. May we forever find ways to keep our memories of them alive. Each of these losses reminds us about how precious, and sometimes fleeting, life can be.”
If you didn’t know, my step son Ethan was brutally beaten to death at the I Promise School in Akron on June 2. Anyone with information is asked to call the Akron Police Department Detective Bureau at 330-375-2490 or the Summit County Crimestoppers at 330-434-COPS. Please share. pic.twitter.com/4Rk0DF0VdZ
— Cyndi Liming (@CyndiLiming) June 4, 2022
Leming was the fourth Akron Public Schools student to die in just the last two weeks, the Akron Beacon Journal reported.
An 8-year-old girl and her 10-year-old brother were killed in a house fire on May 23, and a 15-year-old student was shot and killed on May 24.
