A teenager was sentenced following the shooting death of another teen.

For Immediate Release, October 18, 2024

WICHITA, KAN. – A teenage boy who pled guilty to the shooting death of another boy has been sentenced to the maximum penalty in the Juvenile Court system. On Thursday, District Judge Patrick Walters sentenced Talon Rico of Wichita to juvenile corrections until he is 22 and a half years old with aftercare until he’s 23. Rico is now 15 years of age.

On February 2nd, Julio Ruiz, 17 of Wichita, was shot in the 100 block of N. Zelta in east Wichita. He was one of five boys who talked about shooting a bullet into the ground.  Ruiz carried a 9mm pistol in a holster in his waistband while Rico, who was 14 at the time, had a pistol in the front pocket of his hoodie. 

Ruiz fired once into the ground followed by Talon who fired three or four times.  Witnesses say as Talon fired his gun, it swept toward Ruiz and bullets struck Ruiz. Ruiz ran a short distance before he collapsed and died. 

Later testing of Rico’s gun at the Wichita/Sedgwick County Law Enforcement Firearms Range showed the weapon fired liked a normal handgun and there was nothing that would have caused it to recoil. 

Rico pled guilty to a charge of 2nd degree murder on September 18th.

District Attorney Marc Bennett
18th Judicial District of Kansas
CONTACT: DAN DILLON, MEDIA COORDINATOR 316-660-3707