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Ramon Lyons, age 16, of Huntington Station, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in Suffolk County Court on Wednesday, Oct. 18, in the death of Luis Cameron Rimmer-Hernandez.
According to prosecutors, Lyons ran up to the victim as he stood talking to friends in Huntington Station, on Lowndes Avenue, shortly before 11 p.m. on Aug. 9, 2021.
Lyons, who was 14 at the time, admitted to firing nearly seven shots from a 9 mm handgun, striking the man multiple times in the chest and arm.
Rimmer-Hernandez, a graduate of Half Hollow Hills High School East in Dix Hills, was found lying in the street. He was later pronounced dead at Huntington Hospital.
Following the shooting, Lyons fled the scene and returned to his apartment, located less than a half mile away.
Police tied him to the murder using surveillance video and his own admissions on social media.
In a statement after Wednesday’s guilty plea, Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney blamed the killing on New York’s “Raise the Age” law. The legislation, passed in 2018, made it so 16- and 17-year-olds were no longer automatically prosecuted as adults.
“Unfortunately, the unintended effect of (the legislation) is an increase in shootings and violent crimes committed by young offenders, such as this defendant, who was only 14 years old when he took the victim’s life,” Tierney said.
“Gangs are increasingly using younger members to carry weapons and commit shootings because they know that these offenders will face lesser consequences.
"The murder of Cam was a direct consequence of this misguided ‘Raise the Age’ law. My heart goes out to him and his family.”
Lyons is expected to get 12 years to life in prison when he’s sentenced on Monday, Nov. 13.
Rimmer-Hernandez' death sparked nearly two dozen tributes on GunMemorial.org, where he was remembered as a "proud godfather."
"An intelligent young man who loved his family tremendously," reads one tribute.
“Cameron you were such a light," reads another. "Rest easy."
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