Photo: Courtesy Bomb City; Randall County Sheriff’s Department
In late 1997, a teenage turf war erupted in Amarillo, Tex. On one side: mostly clean-cut jocks who played football at the local high school. On the other side: members of the punk rock community. The skirmishes — both verbal spats and fist-fights — became more frequent, and escalated in intensity.
Then, on Dec. 12, 1997, the turf war turned deadly.
Late that night, a fight broke out in the Western Plaza Shopping Center outside an IHOP restaurant. According to the police report, Dustin Camp, a then 17-year-old football player, retreated to his Cadillac and drove away. According to the report, he turned the vehicle around and deliberately ran over Brian Deneke, who died at the scene.
Brian Deneke.Courtesy Bomb City
Deneke, then 19 years old, had been an entrenched part of Amarillo’s punk rock scene. He played in bands, worked as an artist and skateboarded around town.
Camp was charged with first-degree murder. Prosecutors argued that he intentionally killed Deneke; one of their witnesses was a passenger who testified that Camp yelled “I’m a ninja in my Caddy” as he targeted the teen.
Randall County Sheriff’s Department
Ultimately, Camp was only convicted of voluntary manslaughter. He was sentenced to 10 years of probation and a fine of $10,000. The fine was eventually dropped, but he wound up serving five years in prison for parole violations.
Two decades later, a film based on Deneke’s death and Camp’s trial came out.Bomb City(2017) examinesthe differences between the two teens, both of whom came from middle-class families.
Deneke’s family acknowledges that the film conveys the rawness of the case. “We saw a lot of reactions that a lot of people had,” Mike Deneke, Brian’s father, toldAmarillo.comat the time of the film’s release. “[The movie is] accurate to the point that you really get a good feel of the emotions, frustrations and tensions that led up to what happened and the trial.”
Bomb Cityisavailable for rental and purchase.
source: people.com
