It was a warm spring night, and families in the tidy subdivisions on the eastern edge of Palmdale had gathered at the local ballpark to watch Pony League baseball.
Then screams silenced the stands.
As witnesses watched helplessly Tuesday night, a 13-year-old player in the snack bar line allegedly grabbed an aluminum baseball bat out of his equipment bag and clubbed a 15-year-old spectator on the head.
Bystanders, including his father, who is a coach, rushed to Jeremy Rourke, a former Pony League all-star who lay unconscious on the ground. Jeremy was pronounced dead a few minutes later at a nearby hospital.
The 13-year-old, according to witnesses, appeared stunned by what he had done. He had just killed the brother of one of his closest friends, they said.
The violence, occurring at an event so much a part of the community’s fabric, stunned authorities and residents.
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Some bystanders told authorities that the dispute appeared to be over one of the boys cutting in line. Others said Jeremy was teasing the 13-year-old, a pitcher and third baseman who had just lost a game against a rival team.
On Wednesday, friends held memorial services for Jeremy at his high school and on the playing field. Parents spent the day not just mourning but also trying to figure out what went wrong.
Sheriff’s deputies said the beating occurred about 8:30 p.m. Several witnesses said Jeremy and the 13-year-old exchanged words and shoves in the snack bar line before the suspect retrieved his bat.
They said the boy first hit Jeremy in the shin or knee, then struck him on the head.
“I saw them pushing each other. I heard, dink, dink, I heard the sound of him hitting his leg,” said 10-year-old player Troy Momjian. “Then I looked back and then I saw him take a full swing at Jeremy’s head, and then Jeremy lay on the ground.”
Many people in the league said they don’t want to take sides because it’s a tragedy for both families.
“One life was taken,” said Bill Blaylock, regional director for the Pony League and a 20-year volunteer. “One life, I believe, will be ruined.”