Family, School Mourn Loss of Murdered Wilson Teen

One day after his violent death, 15-year-old Arturis Daniels' family is remembering what promise he held such a short time ago. They remember him as a baseball infielder, a basketball point guard and a loving family member.

Daniels' grandmother Louise Hobbs described him as, "sweet, gentle, good." She said he "loved his family, was a hugger and a kisser and always came by to see his grandma."

All that changed Thursday when Daniels stepped off his bus from Beddingfield High School and started walk along a secluded path to a nearby shopping center.

Police say 17-year-old Kenneth Cox jumped out of the woods, demanded money and shot Daniels in the chest. This incident is not the first time Cox has been in trouble.

The public school system expelled Cox from Fike High School last year, and refused to let him enroll this year.

"He had a history of violating school rules, and also some problems through the criminal judicial system that caused us some concern about him being a threat," Wilson County Schools Superintendent Larry Price said.

There are still many unanswered questions. How did the victim and attacker know each other? Why did the victim have $480 in his pocket after the shooting?

Daniels family hopes other Wilson teenagers pay attention to what happened, and learn to stay away from trouble.

"We just hope that we can gain some better teenagers from this," Hobbs said.

Counselors were in place at Daniels' school Friday to help his former classmates cope with the loss.