DURHAM - Mayor Bill Bell on Monday night called for a formal investigation into whether a teenager accused of killing two college students should have been in jail when the crimes occurred.

He hopes the answers can help target the reform efforts being made in the wake of the shooting deaths of Eve Carson, president of the UNC-Chapel Hill student body, and Abhijit Mahato, a Duke University graduate student.

Also Monday, the City Council voted unanimously to begin negotiations with Greenfire Development on a $284 million public-private partnership. The deal, which could come back for a council vote as early as June, would lead to about 1 million square feet of new construction downtown in exchange for $20 million in city incentives.

Bell received a letter from two residents informing him that Laurence Alvin Lovette Jr., 17, was arrested in November and charged with breaking into their home. Lovette, along with Demario James Atwater, 21, is charged with killing Carson on March 5. Lovette also is charged with killing Mahato in January.

Lovette stayed in jail until January, when he pleaded guilty to a lesser crime and was given a 24-month suspended sentence and released. Bell wants to know whether Lovette's criminal history as a juvenile was taken into account during that sentencing. Bell said local judges have told him that arresting police officers need to attend court hearings that determine whether a defendant's bail should be lowered.

"They felt it was very important they have as complete information when they were making those decisions," Bell said.

"I want to know were [police] involved in this particular case where this young man obviously was released for whatever reason and shortly thereafter the Indian student was murdered."

Lovette was free for only a few days before Mahato was found dead with a bullet wound between his eyes. Both Lovette and Atwater were on probation when the crimes charged to them were committed, and questions have mounted about whether they should have been in jail for violating their probation or at least better supervised.

Council member Eugene Brown called the court and probation systems in North Carolina "broken."

"It appears what we have here, folks, is an incident where these two suspects have not just fallen through the cracks, but they have fallen through the Grand Canyon," Brown said. "A Grand Canyon of bureaucratic ineptitude, of overworked and overburdened parole officers and court personnel, a lack of communication between the juvenile side and the adult side of our justice system."

Bell called on City Manager Patrick Baker to lead the investigation into Lovette's case.

Brown said a report on how Atwater slipped through the cracks would be made April 8 at the Durham County Courthouse.

"These two murders of promising college students hopefully will galvanize us, not just to be outraged but to take action," Brown said. "Unless change is made, we will be up here again, all of us, in angst and fear and anxiety because this will reoccur."

In other business, the Greenfire deal drew a packed house, mostly supporters of the proposed deal.

Council members still have questions about the details of the project -- such as the effect on downtown parking and whether Greenfire is financially strong enough to complete the project.

But they were confident enough to approve nonbinding deal points that will lead to negotiating a final agreement.

The plan calls for a hotel, office tower and a mix of retail and residential uses on three city-owned parking areas -- two lots and a deck.

In contrast to other public meetings, where skeptics posed tough questions, Monday was a veritable Greenfire love fest.

"If we want to change the perception that Durham is a dangerous place to live ... then we have to change the look of downtown Durham," said Kevin McDonald, president of Triangle Residential Options for Substance Abusers, one of Greenfire's current downtown tenants.

"I trust 'em, and I believe in 'em. Let's give Greenfire a hand."

The dozens of TROSA clients who crowded the council chambers promptly stood and did so.