M-A High gathering remembers sophomore Jamel Mims M-A High gathering remembers sophomore Jamel Mims (September 08, 2004)

By David Boyce
Almanac Staff Writer

Menlo-Atherton High School students, teachers and family members gathered for a tearful occasion on Friday afternoon to remember the life of 15-year-old sophomore Jamel Mims, a victim of what witnesses called a drive-by shooting in East Palo Alto.

The 40-minute ceremony was marked by one student after another breaking down in tears as they spoke and read poems, all in an effort to remember the vivacity and positive attitude of Jamel for a crowd of more than 200.

Afterward, students -- many wearing tee shirts imprinted with a picture of Jamel in cap and gown -- gathered outside to release silver helium-filled balloons.

Jamel died Friday, August 27. Shortly before 9 p.m. that day, officers from the East Palo Alto police received calls reporting a shooting near 2261 Clarke Ave. They found him lying in a driveway, said Lt. Lisa Williams of the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office. Paramedics from the Menlo Park Fire Protection District pronounced him dead at the scene.

A 17-year-old boy received a minor gunshot wound in the same incident, Lt. Williams said. He was treated at a local hospital and released.

Police and sheriff's deputies interviewed several people, most of whom described the suspect's car as a 1980s-era dark four-door sedan, possibly a Nissan, but no one reported seeing the car's occupants, Lt. Williams said.

Jamel remembered

Jamel "was just a good-hearted kid," said his freshman history teacher Ellen Woolf in an interview, her voice breaking. "He was always trying to better himself."

"He was one of the good kids," said Breyanna, an M-A student from East Palo Alto who preferred that her last name not be used. "He wasn't a gang member. He was one of the kids who should have made it out (of East Palo Alto). He had dreams and he didn't get to fulfill his dreams."

"Tutu (his nickname) was one of a kind," said Sesha Sims, an M-A 11th-grader from Menlo Park. "He (got) shot because he lived there."

Cash donations to cover funeral costs may be made to the Jamel Mims Fund in care of Outreach at Menlo-Atherton High School, 555 Middlefield Road, Atherton, CA 94027. For information, call 322-5311, ext. 5020.

Anyone with information about the case should call Detective Gary Ramos at 363-4064 or Detective John Munsey at 363-4017. To leave an anonymous tip, call (800) 547-2700.

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