By admin 
MESA, AZ (AZFamily) — More than three years after 18-year-old Jeremiah Aviles was shot and killed, a Maricopa County jury found his former Red Mountain High School football teammate not guilty of manslaughter in his death.
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Peter Clabron III was acquitted following 11 days of trial. Court paperwork from the time of the investigation said Clabron was under the influence and handling a gun when it fired and struck Aviles, who was killed in May 2023 while visiting a friend’s house.
‘There is no closure’
Aviles’ mother, Olga Lopez, says she felt numb when the verdict was read on Wednesday.
“This is news for so many and it’s a story for so many,” Lopez said. “But this is our life.”
Lopez said for more than three years, she was hopeful for a conviction that didn’t come.
“There is no closure for a family who tragically loses a child,” she said.
Before the case went to trial, Lopez said she raised concerns about how Mesa Police handled the investigation.
“Subpar investigation,” said Lopez.
With no conviction in her son’s death, Lopez is left to wonder if that investigation cost him justice.
“It’s too late for my son. It’s too late for our case,” she said. “But it would be unjust if we didn’t highlight the outcomes of this verdict with the police department who failed us.”
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Mesa Police declined to comment on this case when reached out to with Lopez’s concerns.
In a statement, the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office said the prosecution was made significantly harder with the death of a key witness, but MCAO respects the jury’s decision.
Lopez said she plans to keep her son’s legacy alive through advocacy, as well the “Jeremiah Aviles Foundation” which supports high school seniors.
“My Jeremiah is not what happened to him,” Lopez said. “My Jeremiah is an extraordinary young man who’s doing extraordinary things.”
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