Video: Teen Derrion Albert Attacked, Beaten to Death in Melee

No knives and no guns were used. Just fists, feet and 2-by-4s. Thursday's fight turned deadly. Three students were badly beaten, one of whom died. Derrion Albert, 16, was struck in the head by one of those boards.

This is the hard lesson some students at Fenger High School have to deal with after a day of learning. For them it's a hard lesson of reality on the streets.

Thursday (Sept. 24, 2009) after school, two rival gangs got into a fight three blocks from the high school.

In all, four students were beaten in that melee -- one was released from the hospital Friday morning.

While police continue their investigation, some students say they don't want to go back to Fenger next week.

Rival gang members have been fighting for a month -- and each time one of their fellow classmates is injured.

Seconds after being struck in the head with a board Thursday, honor student Albert hit the pavement. That’s when witnesses, who are other high school students, say gangbangers began stomping on and punching Albert.

Derrion Albert's mom said witnesses told her he was "trying to help another student and kind of got mixed in with the crowd of the fight and he was hit.”

A senior who witnessed the whole thing says the melee lasted less than five minutes.

The video shows students and workers from a nearby community center rescue the boy -- but many out there knew it was too late.

Surveillance videos are mounted on businesses in the Roseland area, but Chicago Police say those don't show faces.

Police have a copy of this footage and it may help identify Albert's killers.

But while that investigation goes on, students say they will remember Derrion Albert as a good kid. A quiet, smart kid with no gang affiliation. But just a kid who may not have had enough street smarts to go another way.

If you can identify any of the people allegedly involved in the death of Derrion Albert, please call Area Two of the Chicago Police Dept. That number is 312-747-8272.

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2009 Derrion Albert Coverage:

• Police Cameras in Question After Teen's Death
• Video: Teen Attacked, Beaten to Death
• Video: Tensions High After Student Beaten to Death
• Four Teens Charged in Fenger Beating Death
• CPS, Cops Plan More Security for Fenger
• Tension, Police Arrive in Force at Fenger
• Derrion Albert's Mom Speaks Out
• Teen Beaten to Death in South Side Melee

 Originally reported by FOX Chicago News at: http://www.myfoxchicago.com/dpp/news/metro/video_derrion_albert