17-year-old charged in Kettering teen’s death will remain in jail

KETTERING — A 17-year-old charged with reckless homicide in the shooting death of a Kettering teen will stay in jail, a judge ruled Thursday.

The suspect is charged in connection with the shooting death of Noah Channell inside a Parran Drive house in Kettering in mid-December, just days before Channell's 18th birthday.

It appears the suspect was careless with a loaded gun when it fired, police said, but the incident remains under investigation.

At a hearing Thursday, the 17-year-old suspect’s lawyer requested his client be released, which the judge denied.

The judge questioned why the teenage suspect would need to have a loaded handgun unless he was doing something wrong and needed protection.

The suspect’s lawyer replied the teen had a handgun because handguns are glorified as part of rap culture, noting that his client is African American.

The judge said he was offended by the remarks.

A probable cause hearing has been scheduled for Feb. 21.

Channell, a student at the Ohio Virtual Academy high school, also worked at a local Penn Station sandwich shop, where he was working to become a manager, according to his obituary. His funeral is Friday.