Dan's MySpace URL: http://www.myspace.com/danonaim
Michael's myspace - http://www.myspace.com/mikey2458
A Friday-night argument between two teenagers -- one white and one black -- over the Confederate flag ended with one in the hospital with a gunshot wound and the other in jail, facing felony charges.
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Michael J. Mitchell, 18, left, and Dan A. Azeff, 18.
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Sarasota teen recovering from shooting over Confederate flag
The shooting occurred about 10:30 p.m. in downtown Sarasota near Links and Main streets. The site is across from the Hollywood 20 movie theater and is a popular nighttime gathering spot for teenagers.
According to police and eyewitness reports:
Michael J. Mitchell, 18, a student at the Sarasota Military Academy, was with a group of friends when Dan A. Azeff, also 18 and a student at Sarasota High School and Sarasota County Technical Institute, walked by with another group.
Azeff wore a hat with the Confederate symbol and carried a Confederate flag measuring about 5 feet by 3 feet.
Mitchell and a friend questioned Azeff about the hat and flag, asking if he was a racist. Azeff told them no, he was just exercising free speech.
The fight escalated and the groups exchanged racial slurs. Mitchell reportedly pulled out a handgun and shot Azeff once in the chest, then ran off.
Police closed off Main Street and brought in dogs and a helicopter during a two-hour search for the gunman. They also rounded up several of Mitchell's friends and learned his name and where he lived.
Mitchell was arrested early Saturday at his home in the 5300 block of Southerly Way. He faces a charge of aggravated battery with a firearm.
Azeff, who lives in the 1400 block of Fleetwood Drive, was flown by helicopter to Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg. He was conscious, and was listed in serious but stable condition Saturday evening.
Azeff's parents were at the hospital Saturday and could not be reached by phone.
Azeff's grandfather, Joseph Fischer, said the Azeff family moved to Southwest Florida from the Philadelphia area about 11 years ago. Azeff has an older sister at Florida State University and a younger sister who attends Sarasota High.
Azeff has been involved in the Junior ROTC and is planning to join the Army after graduation, Fischer said.
He also said Azeff hung out with a group of teenagers who call themselves "country boys." An old MySpace page opened by Azeff had the header "A country man can survive," and he posted country music videos by artists such as Rodney Atkins.
Along with his passion for all things country, Azeff has seemed fascinated by the rebel flag, Fischer said. "But he did not know what it truly meant. To him it was just a flag," Fischer said. "I tried to explain to him that, here in the South, it is a symbol of the past."
Azeff had a Confederate flag emblem on his car, but his grandfather scolded him for it.
"I told him: 'Take that off. Don't come to my home with that flag on your license plate,'" Fischer said. "I guess he was hanging around with a group of kids who do that sort of thing."
Mitchell's family could not be reached by phone Saturday and no one answered their door.
Sgt. Major Mike Collis, who is Mitchell's coach for the Sarasota Military Academy's tactics team, said that if Mitchell was indeed involved it was "completely unexpected and completely out of character."
"He was always a good student for me, polite and considerate,: Collis said. "I was his coach and he was a team player."
Collis said Mitchell is a hard worker who always participates in campouts and other activities.
"I was completely taken by surprise," Collis said. "It's a real tragedy and I feel bad for everybody involved."
Collins also wondered why the gunman had a gun in the first place. "Who carries a gun to the movies?"
http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20090426/article/904261055
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