Zavier Mendoza was 14 when he was shot dead in the early morning hours of August 8, 2019, inside a townhome in Olathe, Kansas. The shooting occurred about 2:15 a.m. in the 12500 block of South Constance Street; Zavier was discovered dead at the scene from a gunshot wound. He had been due to start freshman year at Olathe East High School and had hoped to play football.

Earlier that night Zavier and three other teenagers were reportedly engaged in car hopping, taking items from unlocked vehicles. The group found a handgun in one car; surveillance footage showed Zavier removing the weapon. Back at a teen’s home the unloaded gun was passed around for 20 to 30 minutes. A 13-year-old from Roeland Park pointed the gun at the others and pulled the trigger; later, after Zavier reinserted the magazine and handed the gun back, the younger teen racked the slide, pointed it at Zavier and fired. He told police he did not know the gun was loaded and thought he was aiming at a wall when Zavier moved in front of him.

The 13-year-old was arrested hours later and charged with second-degree murder. At trial the defense said it was a tragic accident; in January 2020 a jury found the defendant, by then 14, not guilty. Did anyone who knew Zavier or the other teens notice changes in their behavior in the days before that August night?