"Nothing has changed since the OK Corral": Tombstone shooting rends community

TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - After Saturday morning's officer involved shooting that claimed the life of a 15-year-old boy, rumors are running rampant across Tombstone, a town with a history of policing problems. Frustrated community members want answers and Tombstone's top cop is breaking his silence on the case.

Meanwhile, as the sun set Tuesday night over the town too tough to die, a family prepared to bury a 15-year-old boy's body inside Tombstone Cemetery.

"He was our boy, everyone loved him," said Shirley House, a longtime Tombstone resident. "He was the kindest and the best and most respectful boy I had ever met."

Law enforcement told a different story. They said the 15-year-old broke into a local home and that he hada gun. And Tuesday night, Tombstone Marshal Billy Cloud confirmed to 9OYS that the boy pointed it at a deputy.

"It is never easy to take the life of a human being, but when someone points a gun at you, you don't ask if it's a 15-year-old," Cloud said. "The deputy also has a family he wants to go home to at night. He did the right thing in this situation."

But the problem in Tombstone is trust. The public doesn't trust the Marshal's Office. They're skeptical about the justice system in a town once run by gun-slinging cowboys.

"They make their own laws," House said. "Nothing has changed since the gun fight at the OK Corral right here across the street."

9OYS took those concerns to the Marshal's office for a