A 15-year-old gay junior high student shooting victim in Oxnard, California, has died after being taken off life support.

Lawrence King died as a result of head injuries after being shot at school by a classmate.

Prosecutors have charged 14-year-old Brandon David McInerney with premeditated murder and want him tried as an adult.

King was shot at E.O. Green Junior High School on February 12 and pronounced brain dead the following day.

According to reports from friends of King speaking to the Los Angeles Times, the victim self-identified as gay, sometimes wore make-up and feminine jewelry, and was the target of ridicule by some of his classmates.

Authorities are investigating the shooting as a possible hate crime, but have not confirmed if King was targeted by the shooter because of his sexual orientation or gender expression.

The shooting has been characterized as a "personal" attack and "bad blood" between two students, but advocates caution the violence at the Oxnard junior high is more aptly characterized as a tragic example of widespread homophobia in schools.

"With young people coming out at younger ages, our schools – especially our junior highs and middle schools – need to be proactive about teaching respect for diversity based on sexual orientation and gender identity," said Carolyn Laub, executive director of the Gay-Straight Alliance Network.

"The tragic death of Lawrence King is a wake-up call for our schools to better protect students from harassment at school. As a society, we can prevent this kind of violence from happening."

California has laws protecting students from harassment and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity and expression in schools.

The California Student Safety and Violence Prevention Act was enacted in 2000, and further strengthened through the passage of AB 394 (The Safe Place to Learn Act) and SB 777 (The CA Student Civil Rights Act), which went into effect on January 1, 2008.

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