7 boys face homicide charges

? One boy said he does not attend school because his mother does not know where to send him.

Another was arrested for burglary before he was 10. His father is dead and, at 14, he’s a father himself.

A third in the mob of boys accused of beating a man to death with broomsticks, shovels and poles said he took part because he didn’t want anyone calling him scared.

Four days after as many as 16 boys killed Charlie Young Jr., seven of them were charged Thursday with first-degree reckless homicide. An eighth 10 years old, the youngest of those held was charged as a juvenile with party to the crime of reckless homicide.

It was still unclear Thursday how many boys were in custody overall, or why they beat Young so brutally. But statements from some of the boys have begun to shed light on the deadly fracas.

The violence started when 13-year-old Artieas Shanks threw an egg at Young, police say. Young then struck 14-year-old Marlin Dixon in the mouth, knocking out a tooth. That prompted a growing group to go after the man, hunting him down and beating him bloody and unconscious outside a home where he sought to escape them.

Young, 36, died Tuesday after he was taken off life support.

In addition to Marlin Dixon and Artieas Shanks, the other boys charged as adults were Marlin’s brother, Don Dixon, 13; Lee Mays, 16; his brother Kenny Mays, 13; Montreon Jordan, 15; and Devin Beamon, 16. The charge filed against them carries a maximum prison term of 60 years.

Artieas Shanks, 13, is one of seven boys charged with first-degree reckless homicide in the beating death of Charlie Young Jr. Shanks cried during Thursday's court hearing. According to police statements, his father is in prison.

Of those charged as adults, all except Don Dixon and Shanks were ordered held on $100,000 bail. Dixon and Shanks were ordered held on $50,000 bail.

Lawyers for the boys 15 and younger said they planned to ask to have the cases moved back to juvenile court, as allowed under state law.

Lawyers for all eight boys said Thursday that the statements they gave police were unreliable. They said neither attorneys nor the boys’ parents were present when the statements were made.

According to the statements, five of the boys’ fathers are dead. Shanks’ father is in prison. Marlin Dixon is a father himself.

Two boys said they participated because they were scared of being accosted by the group.