One of the Arizona young men accused of beating 16-year-old Preston Lord to death has asked that cameras be excluded from court as his lawyer compared them to a weapon.
Talan Renner, 17, appeared in a Queen Creek courtroom on Thursday alongside five of the other six suspects in Lord's murder:Dominic Turner, 20, Taylor Sherman, 19, Jacob Meisner, 17, William 'Owen' Hines, 18, and Treston Billey, 18.
Talyn Vigil, 17, is the only suspect to be bailed out of pre-trial detention, and was not physically in court, as reported by The Arizona Republic, who was present in the hearing.
Renner's attorney argued against the outlet's cameras in the room, saying they were akin to 'a weapon.'
Each of the other defense attorneys also requested the cameras be removed.
Talan Renner, 17, is one of seven young men accused of beating Lord, 16, to death outside a Halloween party last year in Queen Creek, a suburb of Phoenix. He is seen in March
It's billed as one of America's best places to raise children, but the killing of Preston Lord, 16, has highlighted a concerning issue of teen violence in Arizona suburbs
The seven suspects of Preston Lord's death, from top left to bottom right:Jacob Meisner, Talan Renner, Taylor Sherman, Treston Billey, Talyn Vigil, Dominic Turner, William Owen
The judge allowed the cameras in the end, but asked that they do not capture the suspects' faces.
A target trial date was set for July, 21, 2025, after defense attorneys said they did not think they could go to trial within a year.
How Gilbert Goons ran amok Phoenix suburbs
The Goons have been involved in at least 95 assaults in 18 attacks
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One attorney said his computer crashed over the huge volume of video evidence in the case.
Lord died two days after he was allegedly attacked outside a Halloween party last October by the seven young men, several of whom have ties to a violent group who calls themselves the 'Gilbert Goons.'
The Goons, officially designated a street gang by the Gilbert police department last week, have terrorized Phoenix suburbs since as far back as 2022.
Police were investigating Lord's murder for months before they finally made arrests in March.
One Gilbert father, Rick Kuehner, claims he had been trying to get Gilbert policeand school officials to protect his son from the Goons since last summer, when his child was first threatened and then brutally beaten up at an In-N-Out parking lot which was a go-to spot for the teen delinquents.
After Lord's brutal beating and subsequent alleged attempted cover ups were detailed by The Arizona Republic, authorities reopened multiple cases believed to have been conducted by a larger group of assailants.
Renner allegedly couldn't help but brag after Lord was killed, texting fellow suspect Sherman to say: 'I might have hospitalized that kid. I hit him pretty hard.'
He isalso said to have shown a video of the fatal beating he'd recorded on his phone to friends while declaring: 'Oh, I put this kid on life support.'
Renner is accused of being the bully who delivered the devastating 'hammer punches' that ended the young athlete's life.
The Goons' reign of terror: DailyMail.com can reveal how the gang of youngsters ran amok in the Arizona town before Preston Lord's death in October
His father, millionaire business owner Travis Renner, has been accused of trying to cover up his son's involvement in the killing by taking him out of town while his hands healed from the beating he allegedly handed out.
Witnesses told police Renner punched Lord at least four times as the victim was knocked to the ground, before kicking him at least once.
Renner then stepped away and allowed the other alleged teen delinquents, who call themselves the 'Gilbert Goons,' to each take a turn assaulting Lord.
The other six murder suspects then took turns stomping, punching and even humping Lord as he laid on the ground, according to a police report and as reported by The Arizona Republic.
Repeat offenders William 'Owen' Hines, 18, and Dominic Turner, 20, were seen kicking Lord. Jacob Meisner, 17, charged in other Goon assaults, was also seen hitting Lord multiple times.
Treston Billey, 18, another Goon previously accused in various assaults, was allegedly the last to attack, jumping on Lord's head as he yelled: 'F*** you, pu***!'
All seven suspects have pled not guilty to Lord's murder, and all but Vigil, who posted bail, remain in jail awaiting trial.
