Man Accused In Shooting Death Of Teenager 21-Year-Old Was Arguing With His Girlfriend When 15-Year-Old Intervened, Police Say

A man attending a drinking party at a Spokane park shot and killed a 15-year-old boy after the teenager punched him in the face Thursday, police said.

Jeremy J. Conwell, 21, was arrested on suspicion of second-degree murder after he went to the Public Safety Building to talk to police about the pre-dawn shooting.

Conwell is scheduled to make his first appearance in District Court today. He is accused of killing Ricky Franetich of Spokane.

Franetich was shot several times with a pistol at Minnehaha Park in northeast Spokane, police Lt. Jerry Oien said.

He died at Holy Family Hospital about five hours after the 1 a.m. shooting, Oien said.

The incident took place at an outdoor party Conwell, his 17-year-old girlfriend and Franetich were attending, police said.

Oien said the suspect and victim got into a fight after Franetich stepped between Conwell and his girlfriend, who had been arguing.

The two exchanged words, and Franetich punched Conwell in the face, police said.

Conwell pushed the teenager away, pulled out a gun and “fired several rounds, striking the 15-year-old,” Oien said.

Other partygoers took Franetich to the hospital, and Conwell turned himself in about an hour later.

Conwell was arrested in 1994 for carrying a weapon on school grounds, according to District Court records. He has no felony convictions in Spokane County.

Franetich had a history of hitting people, according to records in Spokane County Juvenile Court.

In 1995, he was sentenced to 12 months of community supervision, alcohol abuse counseling and anger management after he was convicted of hitting a boy who had made fun of his hair, records state.

Last year, Franetich was sentenced to 55 weeks in juvenile detention after he pleaded guilty to hitting a girl with a baseball bat.

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