Penn alum shot in neck

A suspect has been arrested for shooting a Penn grad in the neck as he walked home in the Northern Liberties neighborhood of Philadelphia.

Christopher Easter was arrested Nov. 22 and faces an attempted murder charge for allegedly wounding 2004 College graduate Kevin Neary, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Neary, who was shot two weeks ago, has recently progressed to being able to breathe for a short period of time without a ventilator — but will still need more surgeries to stabilize his neck.

A week before the arrest, Neary had attended a Penn basketball game and then walked home after meeting a friend at a bar in the Northern Liberties neighborhood of Philadelphia. Easter allegedly accosted and shot him outside his home at around 2 a.m., according to KevinNeary.com, a blog started by Neary’s family to update the public on his condition.

Neary is now undergoing a series of surgeries on his neck at Thomas Jefferson Hospital. He may never be able to move his limbs again because of spinal cord damage, his brother Joe — who coaches the Penn cheerleading team — told the Inquirer.

Twenty-nine-year-old Neary runs his own Philadelphia recruiting firm, Avenue215.

Easter was apprehended on the 1700 block of West Bristol Street in Nicetown after attempting to escape policemen by jumping through a second story window. Now held in custody, Easter has a history of offenses including robbery and aggravated assault, according to the Inquirer.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Dec. 9. In addition to attempted murder, Easter faces charges of aggravated assault, robbery with inflicting serious bodily injury and prohibited possession of firearms, among other charges. His bail is currently set at $5 million.

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