John Jefferson
Inset: Noah Bush (GoFundMe). Background: The area where he drowned in May 2024 (WTOC).
An 11-year-old boy in Georgia was recently sentenced for his role in the killing of an 8-year-old boy who was drowned at a construction site in a so-called “borrow pit” earlier this year.
On May 15, Noah Bush, 8, disappeared from his family’s home in Jesup — a small town roughly 70 miles southwest of Savannah.
On the day in question, he went out with two other boys. Mistaken for friends, they turned out to be his killer and his killer’s accomplice.
Now, each of those boys, who are white, will spend two years in youth detention for their roles in the Black boy’s death and initial cover-up.
On May 16, shoeless, Noah was found in the water of the borrow pit — a hole in the ground that provides filling materials for construction projects. And, near his body, there was a “no trespassing” sign. Initially, Wayne County authorities chalked the death up to a tragic accident.
But, the water was deep, his family noted.
And Noah had a fear of deep water.
“Noah was an intelligent, kind, and loving child,” a GoFundMe for his family remembers. “His light was radiant, and his smile was infectious. He loved playing football, basketball, gaming, and giving out infinite hugs. He will be missed so much, and this loss will leave a hole in so many hearts.”
Weeks passed — 55 days to be exact — before the calculus changed. Noah’s manner of death was determined to be homicide.
“This finding was based on the fact that one of the two juveniles whom were with Noah pushed him into the deep portion of the borrow pit they were wading in,” the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement provided to Savannah-based ABC affiliate WJCL in June.
In short order, an 11-year-old was charged with one count each of simple battery, involuntary manslaughter, concealing the death of another, and criminal trespass. His 10-year-old accomplice was charged with one count each of concealing the death of another and criminal trespass. Under Georgia law, neither child can be named.
“This 11-year-old admitted under oath he, in fact, led Noah Bush down to the clay pits, pushed him into the water and ultimately held his head under the water until he drowned,” Bush family attorney Francys Johnson told Atlanta-based ABC affiliate WSB-TV this week.
Small comfort, tiny elation, and bittersweet acknowledgment for Noah’s family — the disparate pieces of the stories they were told simply did not fit together and they knew their child, they knew he would not have gone swimming and accidentally drown like that.
“The whole entire tragedy has been tough on my family. I just want to say thank you so much to the community. If it weren’t for you standing by my side helping me to continue on; to push for justice. We wouldn’t have gotten as far as we have,” Demetrice Bush, Noah’s mother, said in comments reported by Savannah-based CBS affiliate WTOC after the homicide determination was made and criminal charges were leveled. “There will be no peace until justice is served.”
The 11-year-old”s mother was later arrested on three charges, including making false statements, according to Savannah-based NBC, The CW, and MyNetworkTV affiliate WSAV.
In comments to the TV station, Wayne County Sheriff Chuck Moseley said those charges were not directly related to the Bush case.
The 10-year-old was sentenced to two years in July; the 11-year-old to two years on Thursday, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
“The story they were told was that their son had accidentally drowned,” Johnson told the paper. “They knew that was not true then, and today the same was confirmed in court as the 11-year-old juvenile confessed to this horrific homicide.”
The family’s attorneys believe the killing was racially motivated, according to the Journal-Constitution — and said the 11-year-old was part of the search party despite knowing that Noah was long dead.
Now that the two culpable children have been sentenced in accord with the maximum punishment in the Peach State due to their ages, Noah’s mother does not believe anything like justice occurred.
“This isn’t justice,” she said outside the Wayne County courthouse on Thursday. “My baby was 8 years old with a full life ahead of him, and two years is what the state of Georgia calls justice for an entire life that’s lost … There is no peace, there is no comfort, there is no closure for me. I will live with this for the rest of my life.”
Jerry Lambe contributed to this report.
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