Chicago Incident: Laroy Battle Receives Life Sentence for 2020 Murder of Two Teens in South Shore Over Height Inquiry

A man from Chicago has received a life sentence after being convicted of shooting and killing two teenagers on the South Side back in June 2020. The tragic incident occurred when the teens, who were purchasing candy, innocently asked about the man’s height.

The video in the player above is from a previous report.

Laroy Battle was found guilty of murder earlier this year. He had sentencing hearing before a judge Thursday in Cook County.

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According to police reports, the shooter, who was 19 at the time, fired upon the two teens in an alley located in the 7900 block of South Luella Avenue around 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 20, 2020.

Authorities explained that the shooting unfolded following a brief interaction between the man and the teens, along with a friend, at a nearby corner store. The individuals involved had never met before.

As the three teens walked home, two of them were shot multiple times in the alley. Police said they recovered nine shell casings from the scene.

Victim Jasean Francis, aged 17, suffered gunshot wounds to the back, chest, and left hand, and was transported to the University of Chicago Hospital but did not survive. Charles Riley, aged 16, was shot in the back and left leg and was also taken to the University of Chicago Hospital, where he later died.

Police said the two boys had asked their mothers for the okay to go down the block and buy candy.

The shooter faced two counts of first-degree murder. Previously, he had been convicted for aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, which resulted in probation.

A jury convicted Battle in April.

Following the sentencing, the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office released a statement acknowledging the successful handling of the case by Assistant State’s Attorneys Emily Stevens and Joseph Carlson, noting that the convicted shooter was responsible for an unprovoked attack in South Shore that resulted in the deaths of two teenagers and injuries to another individual.