Jonathan Lewis Las Vegas teen beaten to death by pack of 15 boys defending smaller friend from the bullies. No charges or arrests made. Students went to Rancho High School.
##Update November 15: Eight teenagers, ages 13-17, have been charged with murder after the fatal beating of fellow student, Jonathan Lewis, 17, who agreed to fight the group in a row over stolen wireless headphones. Up to 10 students were involved, all of whom, including the victim attended Rancho High School. All eight are expected to be charged as adults.
## Original story: A Las Vegas teen has died after being beaten by a group of bullies after coming to the defense of a ‘smaller’ friend who had momentarily been thrown into a trash can, the student’s grieving dad said.
Jonathan Lewis, a 17-year-old student at Rancho High School, died last Tuesday — less than two weeks after he was savagely beaten by a mob of 15 kids, his father, also named Jonathan Lewis, told 8 News Now.
Jonathan Lewis, a teenager, was beaten to death by 15 students at a high school in Las Vegas.
This is the state of American government schools in 2023…#LasVegas #JonathanLewis #decay #FailedState pic.twitter.com/8iqgYAZjwM
— Mrgunsngear (@Mrgunsngear) November 12, 2023
Standing up to violence and bullying but with deadly consequences
‘One of his smaller friends had something stolen by this group of 15, and they threw the small boy in the trash can, and our son confronted them and he was attacked,’ according to a GoFundMe page set up by his family.
Footage from the Nov. 1 attack shows the teen confronting one of the alleged bullies before throwing a punch. Seconds later, a pack of kids swarmed Lewis and began hitting and kicking the outnumbered teen repeatedly in the head as he lay defenseless on the ground.
A second, extended video of the beatdown shows one of Lewis’ friends rushing to help as the pack of teens swarm around him.
The unidentified friend is seen trying to rip away the 15 attackers before receiving a blow to the back of the skull — forcing him to retreat for his own safety.
Some of the bullies attacking Lewis are then seen chasing his friend and punching him in the head until he falls to the ground.
Before the video cuts out, up to five of the bullies are seen surrounding Lewis’ friend as he tries to get back up, delivering a flurry of kicks and punches.
Lewis’ girlfriend reportedly gave a statement confirming her boyfriend was standing up for his smaller friend, the family shared.
Kept son on life support against hope he would make it
‘He’s a courageous young man,’ his family wrote on their fundraising page.
Following the attack, police officers found Jonathan bleeding from the head.
Paramedics rushed to his aid, performing chest compressions on Lewis before transporting him to the hospital.
The teen was put on life support at University Medical Center, where he died last Tuesday.
The senior Lewis shared that he kept his son on life support for several days, holding out hope that he would wake up.
‘I just love my children with all my heart, and it’s just unimaginable that we could ever come to this point,’ Lewis’ father told 8 News Now.
Lewis’ father — who lives in Texas — said his son mainly kept to himself and who lived with his mom in Vegas had planned on moving to Austin to live with him prior to the attack.
Youth violence
The father hopes the incident could be part of a conversation about youth violence in the city.
‘Violence just begets more violence and these children don’t even know what they’re doing half the time,’ the father said.
The father also shared that the family was told by investigators they plan to charge several students with murder in Jonathan’s death.
The Las Vegas Metro Police Department’s homicide unit is investigating the incident, but so far no arrests have been made, according to the Las Vegas Review Journal.
‘I hope there’s a way that can find forgiveness in their heart and find a way to be able to come to terms with what they’ve done,’ the father said.
