A 22-year-old man accused of firing the bullet that killed a rising-star teen basketball player in Mount Vernon on New Year's Eve has pleaded not guilty to murder and other charges.
David Hardy was arraigned Friday on charges of second-degree murder, second-degree attempted murder, assault and criminal possession of a weapon in the shooting death of 13-year-old Shamoya McKenzie.
Prosecutors say Shamoya was sitting in the front passenger seat of her mother's car, riding back from basketball practice, when a bullet smashed through the rear passenger window and hit her in the head on Dec. 31.
Hardy was remanded back to jail after he entered his plea, and is next expected to appear in court on May 16.
Prosecutors say the eighth-grader was caught in gang-related fire when David Hardy shot at a man named Prince Scott, who was wounded in the arm.
McKenzie's mother has said her daughter dreamed of attending the University of Connecticut and playing for the WNBA. She already was playing junior varsity basketball with Mount Vernon High School's Lady Knights.
