The tragic murder of Barnard College student Tessa Majors continues to spark debate over juvenile justice after one of her killers, 13-year-old Zyairr Davis, returned to a life of violent crime following his release from juvenile detention. Davis, who was given a light sentence due to New York’s Raise the Age law, later faced attempted murder charges and assaulted a youth counselor by biting them during a detention fight, The Post reports.
On Dec. 11, 2019, Majors, 18, was viciously attacked while walking through Morningside Park. According to reports, Davis and two older teens, Rashaun Weaver, 14, and Luciano Lewis, 14, “viciously descended on the college freshman.” Majors fought back, even biting Weaver, who then stabbed her multiple times. Lewis held her in a headlock while Weaver repeatedly stabbed her, piercing her heart. Davis admitted to picking up a knife dropped by Weaver and handing it back.
Because of the Raise the Age law, Davis was tried in family court and served just 18 months in juvenile detention, while Weaver and Lewis were tried as adults. By 2023, Davis was allegedly involved in a Harlem shooting, opening fire on a crowd in retaliation for a prior gang killing. He was arrested again after violently attacking a youth counselor at Horizon Juvenile Detention Center.
Retired NYPD Assistant Commissioner Kevin O’Connor criticized the law, saying, “They always go back to ‘He was a poor kid who had a bad childhood.’ That’s not the victim’s problem. That’s where government is supposed to step in and do it’s job. You commit a murder you go to jail.”
Tessa Majors’ parents described their daughter’s bravery during the attack: “They have no idea what it is to fight with three males — all of them larger than she — for over a minute, escaping two times only to be surrounded and targeted again.”
