Man accused of killing high school basketball player in Paterson pleads not guilty

PATERSON, N.J. (WABC) -- A man charged with the murder of a teenage basketball player in a drive-by shooting in Paterson over the weekend has pleaded not guilty.

20-year old Gregory Oliver made his first court appearance on Thursday to face charges of murder, attempted murder and weapons possession in the death of 15-year-old Armoni Sexton.

On Monday, Sexton's mother spoke out about the son that was taken too soon. "Armoni, Armoni, I mean, it's just so hard to keep talking about him and talking about him," Lawanda Sexton said.

Gregory Oliver:

Oliver's lawyer said his client was shot in the right arm on the same day. Attorney Harley Breite told The Record newspaper Oliver was wounded in a drive-by shooting in Paterson on Saturday.

Breite does not know if the shooting happened before or after Sexton was killed; three others were wounded as they stood near a liquor store.

Lawanda Sexton is filled with grief after losing her son. "Armoni just was a great kid," she said. "He loved basketball, he loved having friends around him. He loved family."

She made the decision to take her son off of life support, knowing that he was showing no signs of life after being shot once in the back of the head.

"I decided for them to take the machine off, if he breathed on his own,so be it," she said. "But he didn't, and he moved on."

Sexton was shot outside of a liquor store at the intersection of Rosa Parks Boulevard and Godwin Avenue around 8:30 p.m. Saturday. His mom said he was heading home because he had a 9 p.m. curfew.

"Where we live, it's reality," his mother said. "No one wants to get the phone call or, oh, you're child has been killed, but it's the reality."

Armoni, a top scorer and rebounder on the varsity team at the Paterson Charter School for Science and Technology, had dreamed of playing in the NBA. And standing 6-foot-8 1/2 at 15 years old, his prospects seemed bright. But now, his family is planning a funeral while realizing that his dreams will be unfulfilled.

"Always tell your kids you love them," Sexton said. "I don't care if you argue, fight, if your kids get on your nerves. Just always tell your kids that you love them, because you never know when the last time you're going to see them."

Oliver was freed on bail in November for another case involving assault and resisting arrest.