Neighbor, 18, is arraigned in Brockton teenager's death

Victim, assailant were old friends

A prosecutor said that Olivier Baptiste, 15, was shot after refusing to hand over a videogame.

BROCKTON - William Suarez had been flashing the revolver around his apartment complex for a few days when his longtime neighbor and close friend walked in, holding a video game.

Within minutes, 15-year-old Olivier Baptiste was dead, and Suarez was standing over the Brockton High School sophomore in a state of shock, Plymouth County authorities said.

" 'This just didn't happen,' " Assistant Plymouth District Attorney Shelby Smith quoted Suarez as saying. " 'This just didn't happen.' "

Authorities said Baptiste was rushed to Good Samaritan Medical Center on Tuesday, where he was pronounced dead, becoming Brockton's fifth homicide victim this year.

The 5:45 p.m. shooting took place about an hour after Governor Deval Patrick and city officials expressed cautious hope that an influx of state troopers into this city would stem violence that included the slaying of a taxi driver in a botched robbery. The cabdriver was shot to death, allegedly by a 17-year-old Brockton youth.

Yesterday in her Battles Farm Road apartment, Olivier Baptiste's mother said that she knew Suarez very well and that she considered him a surrogate older brother for her only son.

Arielle Baptiste said her son was close to Suarez, 18, but closer still to 15-year-old Brandon Suarez, she said. "They were like brothers."

"He loved those kids," Baptiste said of her son.

William Suarez was arraigned yesterday in Brockton District Court. He pleaded not guilty to manslaughter and unlawful possession of a firearm and was ordered held on $1 million cash bail by District Court Judge James Sullivan.

Shelby, the prosecutor, outlined Baptiste's final moments, which left members of both families weeping. She said that Baptiste walked into the apartment holding a video game and that Suarez ordered the younger teenager to hand it to him.

When Baptiste refused, Suarez pulled out the gun and pointed it at his head. " 'Stop it. It's got a bullet in it,' " the prosecutor quoted Baptiste as telling Suarez.

Suarez pulled the trigger, but the gun did not fire. Baptiste put his hands over his head to protect himself, and Suarez pulled the trigger again, Smith said. Baptiste was shot in the right temple.

Suarez's parents were in the courtroom, as were about a dozen other friends who insisted that the Massasoit Community College student did not mean to shoot Baptiste.

Suarez's lawyer, Brian A. Kelley, made the same argument in court. Kelley also said Suarez did not know the gun was loaded.

"This was an accident," Kelley said.

In addition to living just doors away from each other, Suarez and Baptiste also attended Brockton High School, where teenagers at the 4,000-student school were plunged into grief by the shooting, school officials said. Suarez was a member of the class of 2007.

A former principal described him yesterday as someone who struggled in class, but who showed grit and persistence and was not a disciplinary problem.

Sharon Wolder, a house master at the high school, said she was stunned to learn that Suarez was involved in illegal activity. She said she also knew of Baptiste, who attended classes in another building. .

"Kids are really grieving," she said. "We are all just kind of walking around numb today. "It's the kind of thing that doesn't make sense to anybody."

Baptiste was described as a B student who was slated to take a Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System exam yesterday. Brockton High School's principal, Susan Szachowicz, said that with state approval, about 15 students were allowed to go home instead of being forced to take the exam.

"No 15-year-old should be facing the loss of a friend," said Szachowicz. The school also has counselors ready for others who want to talk.

English teacher Bob Yuto, who had Baptiste in his class, said, "He was just a sweetheart of a kid."

As she walked out of the courtroom after her son's arraignment, Linda Suarez turned toward several of Baptiste's relatives. With tears in her eyes, she offered an apology.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I'm sorry."

"Go away," a woman in the group said, wailing. "Go away."

Arielle Baptiste did not go to court.

"I did not want to," she explained. "Nothing, sir. Nothing, nothing can replace my son. Nothing."