Teen sentenced after pleading guilty to 2022 shooting near Chicago high school that killed 2 teens

CHICAGO (AP) — Teenager who pleads guilty to 2022 crime shooting near Chicago high school who killed two teenagers and injured two others was sentenced to more than four decades in prison.

A Cook County judge sentenced Christian Acevedo, 18, after he pleaded guilty Monday to two counts of murder and one count of attempted murder in a Dec. 16, 2022, shooting outside Benito Juarez Community Academy.

The shooting on Chicago's southwest side killed Brandon Perez, 15, and Nathan Billegas, 14, and injured two other teens shortly after school ended.

Acevedo, who was 16 at the time, was charged as an adult in February 2023 in the attack.

A judge sentenced Acevedo Monday to 46 years in prison, including 20 years for each murder count, and an additional six years for attempted murder. Acevedo must serve the full 40 years in prison for murder and 85 percent of the six-year sentence, meaning he faces as many as 45 years in prison, said his lawyer, Nicholas Giordano.

He called the shooting “a general tragedy” during Monday's hearing.

“It was all unfortunate. Two people were killed and he takes responsibility. But he will spend a significant part of his life behind bars,” Giordano told The Associated Press on Tuesday.

Acevedo had attended Benito Juarez Community Academy during the 2021-22 academic year, but prosecutors said he was expelled for behavioral, academic and attendance issues. Perez was a student at the school, while Billegas attended Chicago Bulls College Prep, police said.

Assistant Cook County State's Attorney Bonnie Greenstein said Monday that shortly before the shooting, Acevedo approached a group that included Perez and Billegas and asked if they identified with the “La Raza” street gang.

Greenstein said that in response, Perez asked why he wanted to know and that Acevedo turned as if to walk away before turning and shooting at the group, the Chicago Tribune reported.