TAMPA, Fla. — The parents of a teen killed in a 2019 shooting have reached an agreement with the 17-year-old boy charged with their son's death.
Christopher "Ramsey" Bevan, 17, will work to raise awareness of gun safety through a pretrial intervention program for an opportunity to have the charges dropped against him for Bradley Hulett's death.
Authorities say Hulett, 15, was shot and killed on Dec. 13, 2019, when he and a group of friends, including then 15-year-old Bevan, were at the home of a Tampa police officer. One of the boys eventually got hold of the gun, officials said earlier.
"Our office filed the manslaughter charge under the theory that Ramsey Bevan had intentionally or recklessly pulled the gun's trigger even though he was not intending to harm anyone," State Attorney Andrew Warren said at a press conference Tuesday morning.
"However we learned that this particular handgun has a defect. A design defect. The gun involved is a SIG Sauer P320. It has a defect that allows the gun to fire without the trigger being pulled. This new info along with the wishes of the Hulett family prompted our office to make this decision," Warren explained.
Through the three-year pretrial intervention program, Bevan will undergo mental health treatment, drug and alcohol evaluation, complete 150 hours of community service and remain arrest-free — all under the supervision of the Department of Corrections.
If Bevan completes all the requirements, the manslaughter charges against him will be dropped. He will be eligible for early termination of the program after 18 months if he completes all the requirements within that timeframe.
Warren explained during a news conference Tuesday that the agreement was reached after an "honest and difficult conversation" where "at the end, Bevan and the Huletts stood up, hugged one another and agreed to work together to help others raise awareness about gun safety."
The agreement both honors the Huletts' wishes to reconcile with their son's friend while still holding him accountable, according to Warren.
And, as Warren explained, Bevan will complete his community service alongside the Huletts, teaching kids about gun safety through the foundation they started in Bradley's honor.
“We feel that this was the best possible outcome given the circumstances of Bradley's case," mother Meagan Hulett said. "We never wanted to see Ramsey spend a lengthy amount of time in jail."
She explained that all they ever wanted was for everyone responsible for Bradley Hulett's death to take accountability.
According to Meagan Hulett, that includes:
- Gun company SIG Sauer for "manufacturing a defective weapon,"
- Officer Edwin Perez — who was not charged — for not properly storing his gun,
- The officer's son for entering the bedroom that was off-limits, taking the gun, and suggesting the group use it to scare Bradley
- And Bevan, who was holding the faulty weapon when it was discharged.
Meagan Hulett said that pushing for Bevan to spend time in jail "would not be justice."
"Today starts our new beginning. We hope that everyone remembers Bradley for the happy, smiling and beautiful brother and friend and son that he was," she said.
"Long love Bradley."
The shooting death of Bradley Hulett
While hanging out at a friend's house after school, one of the boys, who was the Tampa Police Department officer's son, picked the lock to his father's master bedroom to use the bathroom, according to the state attorney. Once inside, authorities say the group noticed a gun.
The officer's son reportedly removed the gun, which he believed to be unloaded, from the holster. Although there was no magazine in the gun, there was one bullet in the chamber.
While Bradley Hulett was in a bedroom playing video games, the others entered with the gun, according to the State Attorney’s Office.
That's when Bradley Hulett was shot in the head.
Bevan was charged with manslaughter with a firearm. In 2020, court records confirmed Bevan would be facing the first-degree felony charge as an adult.
Investigators said at the time they did not believe anyone meant to kill a friend as the evidence clearly shows that it was a “tragic accident where all the boys mistakenly believed the gun was not loaded.”