Boy, 4, shot by teen after refusing to get cigarettes

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. -- A 15-year-old boy fatally shot a 4-year-old
inside a home methamphetamine lab because the little boy didn't fetch
cigarettes fast enough, police said Monday.

``The 15-year-old told him to get him his cigarettes and he didn't and so
he shot him,'' said Sgt. Brad Ringnes. ``It's a strange world.''

Rudy Padilla, 4, and his 5-year-old brother were at home when the
15-year-old boy, who was not related to the younger boys, told them to find
some cigarettes, said police Lt. W.D. Smith.

The boys searched in the kitchen trash can for butts, and apparently didn't
return quickly enough, Smith said.

The little boy was hit in the abdomen by a blast from a sawed-off shotgun
Sunday and taken to San Bernardino County Medical Center, where he was
pronounced dead, Ringnes said.

The 15-year-old, whose identity was withheld, was arrested for
investigation of murder and placed in juvenile hall. He told authorities
the shooting was an accident.

A 20-gauge sawed-off shotgun with an empty yellow casing still in the
barrel and duct tape on the handle was found in some weeds in an alley
behind the home.

The 15-year-old apparently tried to hide the gun after the shooting and
returned to the house, Smith said.

The 5-year-old, who was not identified, was not hurt.

The victim's mother, Marlene Lerma, 24, and her boyfriend, Jeremiah Koenig,
19, who were home at the time, were arrested for investigation of child
endangerment and maintaining a methamphetamine lab. They were held at the
West Valley Detention Center.

The shotgun belonged to Koenig.

A neighbor, who declined to be identified, told the San Bernardino Sun that
Rudy was a ``good kid.''

``He listened to adults. He respected adults,'' the man said. ``I can't
believe it.''