TODAY
Danny Parmertor, who was killed in the Ohio school shooting.
By Isolde Raftery, msnbc.com staff
Five months before the high school shooting in Chardon, Ohio, Danny Parmertor did what many boys do when they turn 16: He went out looking for his first job. He dreamed of saving up enough money to buy a car.
It took time, but eventually, Ernst Lanes hired Danny as a lane captain. For the last month, Danny spent his weekends helping bowlers with scoring and making sure their bowling balls fit correctly, said his boss, Joe Ernst.
This week, Danny, a junior, was supposed to pick up his first paycheck – $273.50. It wasn’t a lot of money, but he was on his way – maybe just a fraction of the way – to owning his first car.
Instead, on Monday morning, Danny was killed in the Chardon High School cafeteria. Thomas “TJ” Lane, 17, is accused of pulling out a semi-automatic gun he had stolen from his uncle and firing 10 shots. Five students were hit, all at random, prosecutors said. Three were killed, one was paralyzed, and another was wounded.
Parmertor died almost immediately. Russell King, 17, and Demetrius Hewlin, 16, died on Tuesday.
The three who died were friends. Family and friends said Danny loved Xbox and wing night; Russell loved to fish; Demetrius was a cuddly mama’s boy who loved tinkering with computers.
Tim Ferguson, Demetrius Hewlin’s stepfather, told ABC News that all three played pee-wee football.
Demetrius’ mother, Phyllis Ferguson, said she has forgiven Lane, because she doesn’t believe he knew what he was doing. She tries not to dwell on the details of that morning, or to think that her son, who normally ran late, was on time that Monday morning.
Chardon, Ohio grieves for the three students who died following Monday's shooting rampage: Danny Parmertor, Demetrius Hewlin and Russell King.
"I don't know what [his] final moments were like, but I can't worry about it," Phyllis Ferguson told ABC News. "You have to accept things done and move on."
Both Demetrius and Russell’s parents said they will donate their sons' organs.
"He will live after his death," Phyllis Ferguson told ABC. "For one Demetrius, there's eight people he can help."
Within a day of the shooting, grim details emerged about Lane's life. His parents are divorced, and his brother was a heroin addict, NBC News reported. Court records show that his father has had run-ins with the law. Lane was enrolled at an alternative school for at-risk youth – a term used on the school’s website.
In 2009, following a fistfight at his uncle’s house, Lane was charged with assault; he pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct.
On Monday, after the shooting in the cafeteria, police and witnesses said, Lane was chased out of the high school by an assistant football coach.
Lane appeared in juvenile court on Tuesday. Geauga County Prosecutor David Joyce said he may be tried as an adult. He likely faces three counts of aggravated murder.
Back at Ernst Lanes, Joe Ernst has fielded calls from bowlers who met Danny during his short time at the bowling alley.
“We had people calling here and asking, 'That young man – we saw his photo on television – is that the same boy that helped us?'” Ernst told msnbc.com. “They were very uncomfortable calling and asking but they had to know. He was such a nice boy. He helped us.”
On Wednesday, Danny's brother picked up his paycheck. It was part of a plan.
Holding back tears, Bobby Parmertor, Danny's father, told the "TODAY Show": "We’re going to pick up the paycheck and we’re going to bury the paycheck with him."
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