A 17-year-old boy is accused of shooting youth hockey coach Michael Brasel

ST. PAUL, Minn. — A 17-year-old boy is charged with the death of beloved youth hockey coach Michael Brasel last Saturday.

The boy is charged with second-degree murder and second-degree murder in connection with a crime. Brasel likely tried to stop the boy from climbing into the family’s car, charging documents say.

Brasel was shot around 7:20 a.m. in the 2300 block of Chilcombe Avenue in St. Paul. Brasel’s son was inside the house at the time and told police he heard his father yell “What are you doing?” before you hear the gunshots. Witnesses then reported seeing a black car with tinted windows and a heavy exhaust speed to the west.

CAUSE: A vigil will be held for Michael Brasel at Langford Park on Friday night

A few minutes later, a witness in St. Anthony — about 1.5 miles from where the shooting happened — said a black car with a loud exhaust had driven onto a curb and the front bumper had come off.

Police were able to use the bumper and license plate to tie the car to two previous police stops in the weeks before the shooting. He was stopped in St. Paul and Savage, although the charges do not state the reason for the stop.

According to the documents, the boy was driving the car both times. Investigators were then able to link the boy to his cell phone and executed a search warrant that turned up location information tying him to Chilcombe Avenue at the time of the shooting.

The boy was arrested Wednesday at his home in St. Paul. He initially tried to run away from the police, but was caught. He was uncooperative when the officer tried to get a statement, according to the documents.

Prosecutors asked the court to confirm him as an adult. He will make his first court appearance on Friday at 4 p.m

Previous payments

The same boy was charged in an April 2022 incident in which he brought a gun that looked like a gun to Harding High School and tried to steal from another student.

Documents say he demanded a student’s cell phone and held a gun to his head in a school bathroom. Two other boys witnessed the incident, which was recorded on Snapchat.

The boy was charged with aggravated robbery and was released from probation in January 2023.

The community mourns Brasel

Family and friends gathered Thursday night for a visitation for Brasel, who was described as a “cornerstone of the community, quiet in an unassuming way.”

On the other side of St. Paul, neighbors have put up their hockey sticks in the coach’s honor.

CAUSE: Neighbors in St. Paul are placing hockey sticks on their porches in honor of the slain coach

Friend Jenny McNattin said he was “so incredibly patient with those kids. He taught the kids how to skate it… I don’t know any other coaches who took the time.”

Brazil’s Vigil will be held in Langford Park on Friday evening at 7pm

WCCO generally does not name suspects who are under the age of 18, except in some cases where they are charged as adults.