HOUSTON – The family of a teenager who was shot last week by officers during a robbery at a fast food restaurant is calling for a federal investigation of the shooting.
Investigators said Xavier Cox, 17, Javalon Robinson, 18, Kendall Wilson, 16, and a 15-year-old boy worked together to rob a Jack in the Box on State Highway 6 and FM Road 529.
Robinson walked into the restaurant, then came back out and got into the driver’s seat of a Mustang, investigators said. They said Cox, Wilson and the other boy walked into the restaurant, where the group held a gun to a cashier’s head while demanding money.
Investigators said officers who saw the robbery walked in and ordered the group to drop their guns. They said the group began firing, and the officers fired back.
All three of the teens were injured. Wilson died at a hospital, and the 15-year-old was critically injured. Cox suffered injuries that were not life-threatening.
The family of the 15-year-old said Tuesday that they believe authorities should not have fired any shots because no shots were fired by the teens.
“These guys were wrong for going into that store,” said Elvin May, the father of the 15-year-old. “We don’t condone that. Even my son, he was wrong.”
Local activist Quanell X said during a news conference Tuesday that he was told that none of the group fired shots at officers.
“The sheriff admitted and the investigators admitted that not one kid fired one shot,” X said.
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, whose agency is investigating the shooting, said he was not aware of any shots being fired by the group, which contradicts the department’s initial news release about the incident.
“I did preface it by saying it’s still under investigation,” Gonzalez said.
May and other family members said they want the Department of Justice to get involved.
“You’ve got to give these kids a second chance,” May said. “You can’t just start determining, ‘I’m the judge. I’m going to kill you.’ It’s ridiculous.”
Investigators said the officers who fired their weapons were part of a robbery task force.
Cox and Robinson are in police custody.