A 16-year-old boy accused of shooting and killing 14-year-old Rakeem Blair Jr. was missing for months from the residential facility he'd been placed in by Montgomery County Children's Services, court filings show.
The teen, who The Enquirer is not naming because of his age, appeared in Hamilton County Juvenile Court on Sept. 1 for a pretrial hearing. He was arrested by Cincinnati police on Aug. 24 and charged with murder, felonious assault and illegal weapons possession.
Judge Kari Bloom said in court that she will decide whether the criminal case will be sent to Montgomery County at a hearing scheduled for Sept. 15.
State law requires juvenile court judges to send a child's case back to the county they're from if they already have proceedings
pending there; however, judges do have discretion to hold onto such cases if it better serves the interests of justice.
Prosecutors signaled their intent to try to keep the case in Hamilton County, saying that witnesses and police officers involved in the investigation are local and also citing the teen's limited ties to Montgomery County.
The teen is currently being held at the Hamilton County Youth Center. Prosecutors are seeking to try him as an adult.
Rakeem was shot on Warsaw Avenue outside a vacant home in East Price Hill on Aug. 18, a building described by neighbors as a "problem house" where drug use and dealing are rampant. He died of his injuries on Aug. 24.
Court records say mom sent teen to Ohio for behavior issues
Court records show the teen accused of killing Rakeem was placed into the custody of Montgomery County Children's Services in June 2024, when he was 14 years old.
He was living with his mother in Washington but she sent the teen to live with his stepfather in Ohio due to behavioral issues, the filings state. Legal concerns between his mother and stepfather led to the teen going to live at the homes of two women he isn't related to, the documents state, adding they both had issues with his behavior.
Agency workers were called on June 19, 2024, to the apartment complex where one of the women lived after a report the teen was wandering the property and locked out of the apartment. He then went to live with the other woman but took a firearm from her, according to the records. She told officials that she no longer wanted to care for him out of concern for her own child's safety and after learning of the teen's attempted murder and aggravated weapon charges in Washington.
It is unclear from the court records which jurisdiction those charges were filed in, nor is it clear how those charges were resolved, if at all.
When children's services officials spoke with the teen's mother about his living situation, the records state, she refused to travel to Ohio to retrieve him.
Teen left residential facility after only three days
The teen had been in the temporary custody of children's services for nearly two years when he went missing from the Lighthouse Youth Development Center on April 15. He was at the facility roughly three days after being removed from a group home for repeated "AWOL" incidents and refusing to attend school.
The teen left to stay with his girlfriend and was believed by agency officials to be in the Cincinnati area, court records show. A caseworker tried repeatedly to locate the teen by visiting his last known locations, facilities he'd previously stayed and local libraries. They were unable to find him.
The caseworker said at a July 7 court hearing that the teen threatened his mother's life and she was "no longer willing to have the child placed in her home," the filings state. During the same hearing, the Montgomery County Juvenile Court ordered the teen to be placed under a planned permanent living arrangement with children's services.
16-year-old was 'fugitive from justice' when shooting occurred, authorities say
Court records show the teen has numerous prior criminal charges in both Montgomery and Hamilton counties. He was charged in Hamilton County on July 9 with cocaine possession, criminal damaging and possessing codeine without a prescription.
The teen didn't appear for an Aug. 12 court hearing in that case and a warrant was issued, the records show. Authorities say he shot Rakeem six days later.
A criminal complaint related to the homicide states that the teen used a gun while being a "fugitive from justice."
A spokesperson for the children's services agency in Montgomery County didn't respond to an email from The Enquirer. The teen's attorney also didn't respond to an email and phone call.
Prosecutors say the investigation into Rakeem's death is ongoing. A juvenile court judge must decide at a future date whether the teen facing charges will be tried in adult court.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Teen 'AWOL' for months prior to 14-year-old's killing, records say
