Monroeville Mall Shooting Suspect Arrested: Teen Charged As Adult

A teen has been arrested for the Monroeville Mall shooting that took place on Saturday night. The teen opened fire inside the Macy’s store located inside the mall, and he wounded three people. Only one of the victims involved in the shooting was the intended target of the teen. The other two victims were innocent bystanders, according to KBTX.

Tarod Thornhill is the 17-year-old shooting suspect. Police were able to identify the teen from surveillance footage. They compared that footage to photos of the teen from social media posted earlier that afternoon to confirm his identity. The teen was arrested early Sunday morning. WTAE reported that Thornhill walked up to Davon Jones, a 20-year-old male, at the mall and said something to him before firing his gun.

Authorities have decided to charge Thornhill as an adult. Because of this, the teen is now being held at Allegheny County Jail while awaiting arraignment. The Pennsylvania teen is being charged with aggravated assault, attempted homicide, and recklessly endangering other people. His first appearance in court is scheduled for February 18.

At this time, two of the shooting victims, including the intended target, are in critical condition. The third victim, a woman, is listed in fair condition.

This is not the first incident of violence at the Monroeville Mall involving a teenager. In December, several fights broke out at the mall, according to the Canton Daily Ledger. Local authorities and mall staff agreed to increase security at the location, but this shooting has prompted the release of a new policy. An adult must accompany persons under the age of 18 after 6 p.m. at night.

Stacey Keating, a spokesperson for the mall, shared a statement about the change in policy at the mall.

“The conduct of unsupervised youth and young adults at Monroeville Mall has created an uncomfortable atmosphere for mall visitors and an increasing safety challenge.”

Gregory Erosenko, mayor of Monroeville, also spoke with the media following the incident, according to KY3.

“We’ve been working with the mall management personnel. One of the things that they are going to start instituting by the end of the month and it’s called the ‘youth escort policy.’ What that means is if you’re under 18 years old you have to be with a parent, a guardian, someone at least 21 or older–or you will be asked to leave the mall.”

It is not yet known when this policy will go into place. The mall was in lockdown until 3:42 a.m. on Sunday morning. The Monroeville Mall reopened on Sunday morning. All of the retail stores opened, except for one.

In a previously released report on the shooting by the Inquisitr, former NFL quarterback Terrell Pryor witnessed the shooting. He shared by the incident on his Twitter account, but he later deleted the tweet.

What do you think of the decision to charge this Monroeville Mall shooting suspect as an adult?

[Photo: Monroeville Mall website]