17-year-old charged with murder in shooting death of Henry Clay student in Lexington

A 17-year-old was charged with murder Wednesday in the fatal shooting of a 16-year-old Henry Clay High School student.

The teen, not yet named by police because he is a juvenile, is accused of killing Arsenio Jackson Jr. early March 4 in the 700 block of Rambling Creek Drive, near Liberty Road.

The teen is being held at a juvenile detention center.

The shooting happened around 2 a.m. on March 4. Arsenio, a junior at Henry Clay, was pronounced dead about an hour later.

His death prompted outcry from city officials and activists across Lexington.

“Gun violence in our city of any kind is tragic and unacceptable, especially when it takes the life of a young person,” Mayor Linda Gorton said in a statement at the time. “My prayers, and the prayers of our entire community, are with all of our families who have lost a child to violence. Your loss is a loss for all of us.”

Devine Carama, director of One Lexington, said he had met Arsenio through a middle school mentoring group, and one of the city’s crisis advocates had recently connected with him to offer mentorship.

“Gun violence affects all of us,” he said. “My call to everybody is just to do something.”

This story was originally published March 12, 2025 at 4:59 PM.