A Skokie court will hold a hearing Jan. 15 to review the status of a case involving the fatal shooting of a 17-year-old Evanston Township High School student.

ETHS senior Darryl Shannon Pickett was killed June 28 in an alley near Church Street and Dodge Avenue, only a block away from the high school.

In early July, Theo David Wright, a fellow 17-year-old classmate, turned himself into the police and was charged with the homicide. Wright has pleaded not guilty.

“This was a tragic event to the community and the family,” said Cmdr. James Elliot of EPD. “The community is still healing.”

Pickett’s death is not the only time Evanston has seen youth violence in recent years. In Feb. 2007, a drive-by shooting in the 2000 block of Darrow Avenue took the life of a Chicago youth.

In 2005, a 22-year-old was shot and killed by a 19-year-old male outside The Keg of Evanston, 810 Grove St. And in 1996, a youth was killed on the corner of Church Street and Dodge Avenue, near the location where Pickett was shot.

A half-year after the flurry of media attention, a candlelight vigil attended by 500 Evanston residents, and public outcry over the unrelenting youth violence, Evanston is still grappling with Pickett’s death.

“Darryl was a great kid,” said Tony Johnson, Pickett’s football coach at ETHS. “He worked hard and contributed to the team.”

Losing Pickett to gun violence was difficult on the team, Johnson said.

“We had a very tough season in many regards, most importantly the loss of (Pickett),” Johnson said. “Emotionally it was really tough … Unfortunately, it was a theme throughout our season.”

Terron Bell, Pickett’s older brother, described his brother as a determined young man who loved sports and playing video games.

“Anything he wanted to do, he’d get it done,” said Bell, 29. “He wanted to get a car, but our mom couldn’t afford it so he decided to work to get himself a car.”

Dealing with the loss of his brother has been an emotional process, Bell said.

“I wanted revenge, but at the same time, I had mixed feelings,” he said.

“I was the type that was always telling (Pickett) to stay away from gang-banging and drugs, telling him to get into no trouble. I couldn’t believe they took my younger brother.”

Bell said the holiday season was especially hard for Pickett’s mother, who could not be reached for comment. In a span of three months last year, Kimberly Bell-Pickett lost a son, mother and sister.

Although the deaths prevented the family from celebrating Thanksgiving together last year, Bell said his family is beginning to heal.

“Christmas – we got together to celebrate good times,” Bell said. “New Year’s – everyone was still sad, but it’s a new beginning and a new year. We’ve got to move forward.”

Bell said he hopes the Jan. 15 court date is one more step toward that goal.

“I hope justice is done,” Bell said.

Reach Paul Takahashi at [email protected].