His mother Kenyatta Whitfield, a single mother-of-four, said she had believed her son had potential.
He excelled in sport, playing American football, and she said he could have been one of the best players in the area.
His mother said she raised Tyson as a single parent, but added: "His father has always been in his life."
Around his 16th birthday, Tyson had a tattoo put across his chest saying "savage".
Witnesses testified that Tyson told them he saw two "crackers" — his phrase for white people — walking through the neighborhood and that he intended to rob them. The tourists said they didn't have any money and begged Tyson to let them go home.
"Since you ain't got no money, then I have something for your ass," Tyson recounted to a witness, then added that he shot the men several times.
The tourists' bodies were found shirtless on the street and their baggy pants were pulled down to their thighs.
"The men ran away and they were shot. I saw one of them lying in the street on his back with his arms outstretched.
"The other was across the road and lying on his back. They were not moving.''
Police have also released a 911 call by a woman who said: "We just seen a white dude laid out, blood everywhere."
the Sunday Mercury has learned of links between the teen and a notorious street gang called Second Line, whose members are suspected of up to 12 recent murders.
His mother Kenyatta Whitfield, a single mother-of-four, said she had believed her son had potential.
