By Steve Klamkin WPRO News

In a case that shocked the state, a suspected gang member who was 16 years old when police said he shot and killed a 15-year old on the first day of school in 2018, Tuesday waived his right to face juvenile court charges, and appeared in adult court to face murder, weapons and assault counts.

As is customary in an initial appearance in District Court, Joel Loarca of Rye Street, now 17 years old, entered no plea to the September 5, 2018 murder of William Parsons, 15 outside the Providence Career and Technical Academy. He was additionally charged with shooting Angel Roman, with the same Taurus .357 Magnum revolver and with several assault and weapons counts.

No reason was given why Loarca waived his right to be charged in Family Court.

At the time, police said that Parsons was the innocent victim of an apparent gang dispute, and that Loarca, who was not named until now, was believed to be a member of the Hanover Boyz gang.

Judge Stephen Isherwood ordered that Loarca, who was dressed in a black shirt and white pants and said little during his brief arraignment, be held without bail pending a bail hearing on September 10.

Parsons’ shooting as school let out at the busy intersection of PCTA, Central and Classical High Schools, prompted an hours-long chase and manhunt resulting in the capture on Sprague Street, about 3/4 of a mile away of Loarca, who had a bullet wound in his leg.

The shooting prompted outrage in Providence, drawing hundreds of classmates and community members to decry the violence in a vigil outside the school.