A 27-year-old Arizona man told investigators he stabbed a 17-year-old to death inside a convenience store last Thursday because the teen was listening to rap music in his car, which made him feel "unsafe."
Court filings state that Michael Adams told police he heard the music as he approached a Circle K in Peoria, Arizona, and felt uneasy because he's been attacked before by people who listened to rap, specifically "blacks, Hispanics, and Native Americans." Adams, who is white, also told investigators he decided to be "proactive rather than reactive" to the "threat" he faced.
Police say the victim, Elijah al-Amin, was buying a soda after getting off of work, and had his back turned when he was stabbed in the neck. Adams, who was released from prison two days before the attack, has been charged with first-degree murder. His attorney, Jacie Cotterell, said in court her client is mentally ill, and when he left prison, he did not have any medicine or a way to receive mental health treatment, The Guardian reports.
The Arizona Department of Corrections responded in a statement, saying Adams was "not designated seriously mentally-ill" and he had been given "contact information for services in the community such as continuing care, housing, welfare, as well as other community resources."