‘I just shot my best friend’: 15-year-old dies after ‘accidental’ shooting

COLERAIN TOWNSHIP, Ohio (WXIX) - A teenager is dead and another is in custody after a shooting in Colerain Township Sunday night.

Demarian Palmisano, 15, died at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital after he was “accidentally” shot in the back of the head with a rifle, according to the Hamilton County Coroner’s Office and 911 calls.

“I just shot my best friend. I just shot my best friend,” were the first words the teenage suspect said to the 911 dispatcher that night.

Colerain Township police were dispatched to the 3000 block of Laverne Drive at approximately 8:59 p.m.

After obtaining personal information from a frantic group, the dispatcher asked the teen what happened.

“I shot him in the back of the head on accident,” he responded.

“With a BB gun or a bullet?” She asked.

“A bullet - bullet. I shot him in the back of the head with a .22 [rifle],” the teen explained.

“I am so sorry Demarian, I am so sorry. Please come through,” he pleaded. “I didn’t know, I didn’t know. Am I going to go to prison for the rest of my life?”

The dispatcher asked the juvenile to explain what happened.

He told her that he was using his friend’s rifle, and to prepare it, he had to prime it. However, he says he did not know the firearm was already primed.

“And I accidentally pulled the trigger behind him and shot him in the head,” he said.

Palmisano was still breathing when EMS arrived at the scene. They transported him to Children’s Hospital where he later died.

Colerain Township police say a 16-year-old was arrested on a reckless homicide charge. The teen was also under the influence of alcohol, they added.

The suspect was taken to the Hamilton County Juvenile Detention Center and is scheduled to be back in court on Aug. 14.

As of now, the incident remains under investigation. If anyone has information on the shooting, contact Colerain police at 513-321-COPS.

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