Deshaun Hill, Minneapolis North High Quarterback, Dies After Shooting, Coach Says

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Deshaun Hill, the teenager shot Wednesday afternoon in north Minneapolis, has died, according to his football coach.

Hill, 15, played quarterback for North Community High School in Minneapolis, where he was an honor roll student. His coach, Charles Adams, told WCCO-TV that the teenager succumbed Thursday evening to injuries suffered in the shooting, which happened near the intersection of Penn Avenue North and Golden Valley Road.

In a Facebook post, North High notified students of Hill's death, saying: "Dear Polar nation, we have lost our beloved D. Hill."

Authorities have yet to release details on the shooting. So far, no arrests have been made.

Hill was a quarterback ready for his chance to shine, and a teenager beaming with a bright future.

"Everybody is in pain over this young man," said Lisa Clemons of A Mother's Love.

The intersection where Hill was shot is patrolled daily, from noon to 5 p.m., by street outreach team We Push for Peace -- except the day Hill was shot. On Wednesday, members attended the funeral for Jahmari Rice, the teenager killed in a shooting last week outside a Richfield school. After the service, the group took off patrol duty.

"It angered a lot of us, all of us actually," said member Trenton Pollard. "We were talking about it in the meeting this morning. We were just super angry about it, the fact that we weren't out here. Because we believe that it wouldn't have happened if we were."

Surveillance cameras tower over the intersection, giving people hope whoever fired the gun will be caught. But hope is hard to find when a promising young life is cut short.

Clemons spent time with Hill's mom at the hospital Wednesday while he was fighting for his life. Family, friends and teammates joined them.

"Everybody was somber. It just was people in their thoughts, praying," Clemons said.

Hill played basketball as a freshman at Minneapolis North. Coach Larry McKenzie tweeted "The pain of watching my kids in tears over the loss of a teammate and friend is so difficult … We are hurting bad right now."

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Athletics helped Hill gain renown, but it's his smile and his humble personality people won't also forget. A family friend described him as the "heart of the North community. A representation of what could be, what should be."

WCCO-TV has learned that Showtime is making a documentary on the North High Polars football team, with Hill as a focal point in the project. The documentary crew was distraught to learn about the shooting Wednesday.

Hill was shot just blocks away from the scene of another shooting Wednesday, where a a school bus driver was shot in the head. Three students under the age of 10 were on the bus at the time. The driver is expected to survive, and none of the children were hurt.

Also on Thursday, another shooting on the city's northside left two men dead. Counting Hill's death, Minneapolis has logged seven homicides so far this year.

Minneapolis Public Schools Superintendent Ed Graff released this statement Thursday evening about Hill's death:

We cannot begin to express the sadness we feel as a result of this devastating loss. This bright young man had everything to live for and a promising future ahead of him. The gun violence in our community has to stop. Our youth deserve to feel and be safe. MPS pledges its support to our student's family, his friends and all those at North and the rest of MPS who knew and loved him. Additionally, we've had staff at North High yesterday and today supporting students. Staff will also be there tomorrow.