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Getbig Main Boards => Politics and Political Issues Board => Topic started by: Dos Equis on May 27, 2007, 08:32:25 PM
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Tough cases. We're not a death penalty state, so it's not as serious an issue as it could be, but he'll still face life in prison.
Updated at 4:39 p.m., Sunday, May 27, 2007
Prosecutors seek waiver to charge boy, 15, with murder
By Rod Ohira
Advertiser Staff Writer
Prosecutors will petition Family Court to waive its jurisdiction over a 15-year-old boy so he can be charged as an adult with murdering a 51-year-old 'Ewa Beach woman.
Honolulu police spokesman Capt. Frank Fujii described the killing as "very well planned, very well executed" in a news conference today announcing the decision to seek a waiver.
The medical examiner's office said today the woman's identity has not been confirmed, but neighbors said she is Karen Ertell.
Ertell's body was discovered Friday at her 'Ewa Beach home on Akua Street after family and co-workers called police when she failed to show up for work.
Ertell was owner of Koko Crater Coffee roasters in Kaka'ako.
Fujii said an autopsy today determined Ertell was strangled, and that manner of death was homicide. Prosecutors will seek to charge the boy as an adult with murder, robbery, burglary, auto theft and other offenses, Fujii said.
The boy was arrested at about 10 p.m. yesterday at his home after his father called police to turn in his son, Fujii said.
A Volvo sedan stolen from Ertell's home was recovered Friday night at Geiger Park.
http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2007/May/27/br/br6803472195.html
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Rightfully so. It's time we stopped coddling these moppets.
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Rightfully so. It's time we stopped coddling these moppets.
I can't really argue with you. I'm a little torn. Being in a house full of kids, it's easy to see how much they have to learn and grow and how little they know about life as teenagers. But some of these crimes are so serious that it's hard to conclude the kid didn't completely appreciate what he or she was doing.
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At 15 years old i donno about him doing life or facing the death penalty even though there isn't one in Hawaii.
BUT. He needs to be tried and punished as an adult at least in some respects. Premeditated is murder one right? Then he should have to be in prison at least 10 years. Hopefully 5 of those last years in a prison where there's a chance to rehabilitate him. I'm not big in the whole rehabilitation thing but in this instance of a 15 year old i believe it's warranted.
This kid shouldn't be afforded the rights of minor and be released when he is 18.
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At 15 years old i donno about him doing life or facing the death penalty even though there isn't one in Hawaii.
BUT. He needs to be tried and punished as an adult at least in some respects. Premeditated is murder one right? Then he should have to be in prison at least 10 years. Hopefully 5 of those last years in a prison where there's a chance to rehabilitate him. I'm not big in the whole rehabilitation thing but in this instance of a 15 year old i believe it's warranted.
This kid shouldn't be afforded the rights of minor and be released when he is 18.
Now that I think about it, I believe the U.S. Supreme Court said the execution of minors is unconstitutional, so he couldn't face the death penalty anyway.
Murder one is premeditated. You would think that a 15-year-old kid could be rehabilitated. I think a kid can be kept past 18? Not sure what the max age is? Twenty-one or so? Tough to draw lines.
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Problem is he may go to jail.
I have no problem whatsoever with locking this kid up for whatever time it takes to get him straight.
But the prisons of today, with minimal rehabilition functions?
That's a waste.
FWIW, I have the same view on all sentencings.
I don't have any problem with putting people in prison for a long time, if it means that they will be straight when they come out.
My only priority is law-abiding citizens.
As short sentence as possible is in the interest of the taxpayers, and that can only be done if the time spent is effective.
From my point of view, every year this kid is in prison, the society loses input to the GNP.
-Hedge
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Hedge another way to look at it is every year this kid is in prison, one or more Americans are that much safer. His father is blaming the police for not locking the kid up:
The father of a 15-year-old murder suspect says the killing of an Ewa Beach woman could have been avoided if law enforcement officials had listened to him and put his son in jail.
"He had a burglary in Pearl City. The policeman called me up to pick him up, and I told them, 'Why can't you guys lock him up?'" said the man, who gave only his first name, Petelo, in an interview yesterday.
"They said, 'We cannot because he is underage.'"
http://starbulletin.com/2007/05/29/news/story01.html
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I think 11 is too young.
JUDGE JEANINE PIRRO: Should an 11-Year-Old Be Tried For Murder as an Adult?
By Judge Jeanine Pirro
Published January 28, 2011
FoxNews.com
Should an 11-year-old who allegedly kills a 26-year-old pregnant woman and mother of two with a shotgun be charged as an adult? That's the question in Pennsylvania.
The facts are simple. An 11-year-old received a shotgun as a gift for Christmas from his dad. He was a good shot, and won a turkey shoot less than two weeks before the shooting -- beating out several adults. The victim was his father's girlfriend who was pregnant with his father's child. The boy and his father were living in the same home with the victim and her two daughters, just seven and four years old.
The issue of children being prosecuted as adults has always been controversial. Our belief that children should be treated differently stems from a society trying to protect those who are young and capable of reform. On the other hand, there are those who believe the punishment should fit the crime, not the criminal.
The United States Supreme Court has held that the purpose of juvenile courts is to seek rehabilitation, supervision or provide counseling. Treatment of juveniles is usually more lenient than for adults. The purpose is to protect youth and guide them to more productive lives, while still holding them accountable to some degree for their actions.
Juvenile court proceedings are generally private and held in rooms separate from adult courtrooms. If the offender is found delinquent, a probation officer prepares a more detailed report recommending a sentence. The harshest treatment is a sentence in a locked juvenile facility.
Historically, the fact that children were treated differently often caused a deprivation of their rights. The United States Supreme Court in 1967 dealt with this issue in a landmark case (In re Gault). There, a 15-year-old was arrested for making dirty remarks over the telephone. He was arrested and kept in custody. His parents were not advised that he was in police custody nor were they advised of the charges against him. He was held in a detention facility for a week. No record of the proceeding was kept; and the witness to whom he made the call didn't even appear in court. He was sentenced to spend the next six years in a state school until he was 21 years old. His parents were poor, did not have a high school education and only had $100, but pursued the matter and took the case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. There, the highest court in the land, extending rights to children that adults customarily had, overturned his conviction.
The decision to prosecute a child as an adult is a difficult one. I know. I have made the decision to prosecute a 12-year-old killer as an adult. The choice is not about being "hard" or being compassionate. It is about recognizing the evil that accompanies a killer's choice to take the life of an innocent pregnant woman and mother of two, whose children will never get to hug their mother again because an angry "boy" with a gun decided she should die.
Once a decision is made to prosecute a juvenile as an adult, the case is transferred to an adult court. Such a transfer can have serious sentencing consequences -- the juvenile can be sentenced to life or even death (if he or she is over age 18 years old at the time of sentencing).
In the case at hand, the District Attorney in Lawrence County, Pennsylvania has made the decision to prosecute this 11-year-old as an adult. He bases this on the theory that the crime was "premeditated," in that the boy first came downstairs with a weapon and was seen by the victim's seven-year-old daughter.
He reversed course, went back to his room, and put a blanket over the gun. He then returned to the first floor bedroom where his victim was sleeping and shot her in the back of the head.
There are reports that the 11-year-old had threatened to kill his victim and her daughters for months.
His callous action -- throwing a spent shell casing from his shotgun, before getting on a bus to go to school, was witnessed by the seven-year-old girl. That shell casing was later recovered by the police.
A three judge panel of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania met in Pittsburgh on Tuesday to determine whether or not Jordan Anthony Brown should be tried as an adult. A County Court judge already refused to move Brown’s case to juvenile court. If tried as an adult Brown faces life in prison but would be free by age 21 if he was tried in juvenile court.
I agree with the decision to try Brown as an adult because it appears that this boy plotted to kill his father's fiance. He not only threatened to kill her, he, at first, hid the gun and then picked up shell casing before getting on the bus to go to school.
Judge Jeanine Pirro is the host of "Justice with Judge Jeanine" which airs Saturday evenings at 9 p.m. ET on Fox News Channel. She is also the host of a daytime courtshow "Judge Pirro." She is a former County Court Judge and District Attorney of Westchester County, New York .
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2011/01/28/judge-jeanine-pirro-year-old-tried/#ixzz1CYAitOlC
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If it was my mama that this "kid" killed... you bet I'd be willing to try his 15 year old ass as an adult.
In the old bible time, an eye for an eye, the kid would be dead already. Rightfully so.
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Nah, I'll bet this woman is not really quite as dead as if she'd been strangled by a 30 year old.
Let the kid go. The womans family should understand.
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I think a tough sentence is in order, but certainly not life without parole or anything like that.
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Nah, I'll bet this woman is not really quite as dead as if she'd been strangled by a 30 year old.
Let the kid go. The womans family should understand.
Where would you draw the line? What age?
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I think 11 is too young.
JUDGE JEANINE PIRRO: Should an 11-Year-Old Be Tried For Murder as an Adult?
By Judge Jeanine Pirro
Published January 28, 2011
FoxNews.com
The face of evil:
(http://celebgalz.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/8-300x293.jpg)
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wouldnt it be LIBS who want to let him go with a strong talking to... and conservatives who wanna lock him up for 50 years?
Lock him up.
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Problem is he may go to jail.
I have no problem whatsoever with locking this kid up for whatever time it takes to get him straight.
But the prisons of today, with minimal rehabilition functions?
That's a waste.
FWIW, I have the same view on all sentencings.
I don't have any problem with putting people in prison for a long time, if it means that they will be straight when they come out.
My only priority is law-abiding citizens.
As short sentence as possible is in the interest of the taxpayers, and that can only be done if the time spent is effective.
From my point of view, every year this kid is in prison, the society loses input to the GNP.
-Hedge
don't forget the other side of the equation, the society pays of him to be in jail.
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The face of evil:
(http://celebgalz.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/8-300x293.jpg)
Life sentence for this kid?
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(http://www.allgov.com/Images/eouploader.87972263-c55c-4ead-984c-187019e2d177.1.data.jpg)
Jordan Brown and Kenzie Houk
Pennsylvania Considers Life in Prison for 11-Year-Old Accused of Murder
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Juvenile Jordan Brown is set to be tried as an adult by a Pennsylvania court for allegedly murdering his father’s 8½-month pregnant fiancée when he was 11 years old.
The criminal case has garnered attention from child advocates in the U.S. and overseas who object to treating Brown as an adult. If convicted, the now 13-year-old would receive life in prison without possibility of parole, making him the youngest child in American history to receive such a sentence.
Brown is accused of shooting Kenzie Houk in the back of the head while she was asleep with a child-sized shotgun his father had given him. Brown had five other guns in his bedroom. Because Houk and her unborn baby both died, Brown is facing two counts of premeditated murder. According to one doctor who examined Brown, he was resentful because he would be moved out of his room to make way for the new baby.
The judge overseeing the case, Dominick Motto, decided that Brown should be tried as an adult because, despite convincing physical evidence, he has refused to admit guilt and has shown no remorse.
How did this 11 year old have 6 guns in his bedroom?
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(http://www.allgov.com/Images/eouploader.87972263-c55c-4ead-984c-187019e2d177.1.data.jpg)
Jordan Brown and Kenzie Houk
Pennsylvania Considers Life in Prison for 11-Year-Old Accused of Murder
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Juvenile Jordan Brown is set to be tried as an adult by a Pennsylvania court for allegedly murdering his father’s 8½-month pregnant fiancée when he was 11 years old.
The criminal case has garnered attention from child advocates in the U.S. and overseas who object to treating Brown as an adult. If convicted, the now 13-year-old would receive life in prison without possibility of parole, making him the youngest child in American history to receive such a sentence.
Brown is accused of shooting Kenzie Houk in the back of the head while she was asleep with a child-sized shotgun his father had given him. Brown had five other guns in his bedroom. Because Houk and her unborn baby both died, Brown is facing two counts of premeditated murder. According to one doctor who examined Brown, he was resentful because he would be moved out of his room to make way for the new baby.
The judge overseeing the case, Dominick Motto, decided that Brown should be tried as an adult because, despite convincing physical evidence, he has refused to admit guilt and has shown no remorse.
How did this 11 year old have 6 guns in his bedroom?
Must have gotten them from his father.
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Must have gotten them from his father.
Seems like his father should join him in prison.
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A family divided.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jan/25/us-boy-accused-murder-appeals
Houk's death has divided the two families involved in their response to Brown's judicial treatment. The boy's father, Chris Brown, protests his son's innocence and says he has no idea what could await him.
"Try to explain to a 12-year-old what the rest of your life means. It's incomprehensible for him," he told ABC News last year.
The victim's mother, Deborah Houk, has pushed for the toughest sentence for the boy. "I can't stand this 'Oh, he's 11,' 'Oh, his clothes don't fit him,'" she told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review soon after her daughter's death. "He knew what he was doing. He killed my baby."
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I feel that all child killers should be forced to live with a wealthy liberal "sponsor" in exchange for a tax rebate. The "sponsor" will be held criminally liable for any and all acts of the child while in their custody.
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Seems like his father should join him in prison.
Yep.
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Where would you draw the line? What age?
8? 5?
Does it matter?
If some pre-teen offed one of your kids, would you be less upset because of the perps age?
Dead is Dead. If the age of the killer matters, than the age of the victim does too.
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8? 5?
Does it matter?
If some pre-teen offed one of your kids, would you be less upset because of the perps age?
Dead is Dead. If the age of the killer matters, than the age of the victim does too.
Yes it matters. We're talking about the severity of the punishment, not whether there should be any punishment at all. In other words, the issue is at what age do we treat kids like adults when they commit serious crimes? You're fine with ages 5 and 8. I'm not. Not sure exactly where I would draw the line.
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Florida Boy, 12, Charged as an Adult in Brother's Murder
By Phil Keating
Published October 19, 2011
FoxNews.com
In the Florida courtroom, the first-degree murder defendant is dwarfed by the cops who surround him. In the interrogation room, he can barely sit still or stay awake.
This defendant is 12 years old and, if convicted, could spend the rest of his life in prison.
His name is Cristian Fernandez, and he is the youngest person to be charged with murder as an adult in Jacksonville's history.
“Yes, I have compassion for Cristian Fernandez, but it's not my job to forgive,” State Attorney Angela Corey said. “It's my job to follow the law."
Police say the crime was premeditated, that Fernandez intentionally killed his 2-year-old brother, David, by violently shoving him into a bookshelf twice, causing a skull fracture and massive internal bleeding.
The medical examiner ruled David’s death a homicide, caused by blunt-force trauma. Their mother, Biannela Susana, was not home at the time of the incident. Police say as David lay on his bed unconscious, his older brother called their mother, who then came home.
What happened next is very much at issue.
Susana, 25, is charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child and felony child abuse. She remains in jail on a $1 million bond and, if convicted, faces up to 30 years in prison.
Police say they have a confession from Cristian, but the case still has sparked international outrage. More than 170,000 people have signed an online petition urging the prosecutor to treat the 12-year-old as a juvenile, not as an adult. The prosecutor disagrees and says she is following Florida law.
The Sunshine State sends more juveniles into the adult prison population than any other state. In 2009, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, 393 Florida juveniles entered adult prison. Florida was followed by Connecticut with 332 such cases, North Carolina with 215, New York with 190, Arizona with 157 and Texas with 156.
“He’s just a kid,” said Alicia Torres, whose son was a classmate of Cristian's. She signed the petition, too. "He's got a baby face. ... He doesn't know -- he doesn't know what's going on."
Complicating the Fernandez case is the role of Susana. Police say during the several-hour window between when she came home and drove David to the hospital, her laptop shows that she searched “when some (sic) gets knocked out” at 10:54 a.m. “When your unconscious for hours” at 2:15 p.m. At 2:38 p.m., “concussions on children.”
Then there were online searches for a Wachovia Bank account. At 2:39 p.m., the search was for “mayoclinic.com.” After that, according to the police report, someone downloaded music, searched popular screen savers, went to YouTube and then finally “St. Luke’s Hospital, Jacksonville, Florida” at 3:07 p.m.
A doctor at St. Luke’s told a police officer that had the toddler been treated sooner, he may have survived.
Cristian Fernandez’s public defenders argue all of the blame belongs with the mother, and Fernandez does not deserve to be prosecuted in the adult system.
"I think many would argue that she's the most culpable when it comes to the death of this child," Matt Shirk said.
In light of a plea deal that may spare this 140-pound murder defendant from the adult system, Fernandez will next be in court Oct. 31. His trial date has not yet been set.
The mother is scheduled to stand trial starting Feb. 27.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/10/19/boy-12-charged-with-murder-as-adult-in-florida/
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Still No Plea Deal for 12-Year-Old Murder Suspect Cristian Fernandez in Florida
By Phil Keating
Published December 05, 2011
FoxNews.com
It seems likely that 12-year-old murder suspect Cristian Fernandez will not be offered a plea deal.
This means the boy, if convicted, could be in prison for the rest of his life.
On Monday, a judge in Jacksonville, Fla., set February 27, 2012, as the trial date for the youngest person ever to be charged as an adult with first-degree murder in that city.
Fernandez is accused of pushing his 2-year-old brother David so violently into a bookshelf that the youngster never woke up and could not be saved by the time he got to the hospital.
The prosecutor had offered a plea deal several weeks ago. Under that deal, the boy would have to admit to murder. Then, when he turns 21, he could be set free.
But for Fernandez’ defense team, that deal is unacceptable for two reasons: it would mean their client would have to admit to murder, and that it's possible Fernandez would have to spend the final three years of that sentence in an adult prison. The defense had been hopeful that the state attorney would come back with a new plea deal offer, but that has not happened.
Fernandez’ mother, who was 12 years old when she became pregnant with Cristian, is also being held in prison without bond. She’s charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child, culpable negligence, because an investigation by police of her laptop shows a Google search for “when some (sic) gets knocked out” at 10:54 a.m. Then “concussions on children” at 2:38 p.m.
Those searches were followed by activity checking the family bank account, downloading of music, and then, finally, at 3:07 p.m., the first search for the location of “St. Luke’s Hospital, Jacksonville, Florida.”
A doctor at the time told detectives that had the 2-year-old been rushed to the hospital immediately, he could have been saved.
The evidence -- not all of which is open to the public -- was weighed by a grand jury, which determined 12-year-old Fernandez should be tried as an adult.
Also in court today, the boy’s defense attorneys made a brand new motion to have the judge dismiss the entire felony murder case, saying the conditions of these charges is not applicable.
Both Cristian Fernandez and his mother, Biannela Susana, remain held without bond.
Prosecutor Angela Corey previously told Fox News “Yes, I have compassion for Cristian Fernandez , but it's not my job to forgive, it's my job to follow the law.”
As for the mother, two of her four children are now in Florida foster care. One is dead and the other goes on trial for first-degree murder less than two months from now.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/12/05/still-no-plea-deal-for-12-year-old-murder-suspect-in-florida/?test=latestnews
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15-year-old Maryland boy sentenced 85 years for killing teacher
Published January 14, 2012
FoxNews.com
(http://a57.foxnews.com/static/managed/img/U.S./396/223/wonsom.jpg)
Brian Lee Wonsom, 15, pleaded guilty to murder in the death of a teacher at a youth detention facility in Maryland’s Prince George’s County.
A 15-year-old was sentenced to 85 years in prison for killing and sexually assaulting his teacher at a Maryland youth facility, MyFoxDC reported.
Brian Wonsom pleaded guilty on Friday to killing his teacher Hannah Wheeling with a cinder block when he was 13.
"It's a tremendous tragedy," Prince George's County State's Attorney Angela Alsobrooks said. "And there’s no answer for why a 13-year-old boy is capable, would be capable, of killing and raping in the manner that he did, but we are now satisfied that we have removed the threat from our community. It is sad on so many levels.”
(http://a57.foxnews.com/static/managed/img/U.S./156/88/teacher.JPG)
Teacher, Hannah Wheeling was found murdered at a Maryland Youth Facility.
Court records show that Wonsom also pleaded guilty to a second violent attack that originally was not made public.
Wonsom was being held at Cheltenham Youth Facility, which serves youth awaiting trial or court disposition, after his mother found stolen items in his possession.
Wheeling’s bloody body was found outside a cottage on February 18, 2010. Additional evidence, including a bloody sweatshirt with matching DNA to the victim, was found by state police investigators under a stairwell. The name inside the sweatshirt read “Brian Wonsom, ” the report said.
DNA matching Wonsom was found on a lanyard that was used in the attack.
Prosecutors believe Wonsom is a sociopath who would need decades of intensive therapy before anyone would think it was prudent to allow him to walk the streets again, the report said.
In court Friday, prosecutors showed evidence of the teen trying to kill another woman before attacking his teacher at the facility in 2010. The boy is also a prime suspect in an attempted murder case.
Prosecutors say the 13-year-old entered a woman's apartment through an unlocked sliding glass door and stabbed her several times before she screamed and he ran off. Investigators connected Wonsom to the crime through fingerprints found on a knife, MyFoxDC reported.
Prosecutors say doctors who examined the teen found him to be sane, but wicked.
"Oh yeah, completely without being mentally ill,” Prosecutor Wes Adams said. "He exhibited no remorse, childhood onset anti-social personality disorder. That's not criminally insane, that's dangerous.”
Why he chose to attack Wheeling is still unclear.
Since there is parole in Maryland, Wonsom will be eligible to apply in his mid-to-late 50s.
Click here to read more on this story from MyFoxDC.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/01/14/15-year-old-maryland-boy-sentenced-85-years-for-killing-teacher/
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Supreme Court: No more life without parole for juveniles
Published June 25, 2012
Associated Press
The Supreme Court says it's unconstitutional to sentence juveniles to life in prison without parole for murder.
The high court on Monday threw out Americans' ability to send children to prison for the rest of their lives with no chance of ever getting out.
The 5-4 decision is in line with others the court has made, including ruling out the death penalty for juveniles and life without parole for young people whose crimes did not involve killing.
The decision came in the robbery and murder cases of Evan Miller and Kuntrell Jackson, who were 14 when they were convicted.
Miller was convicted of killing a man in Alabama. Jackson was convicted of being an accomplice in an Arkansas robbery that ended in murder.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/06/25/supreme-court-no-more-life-without-parole-for-juveniles/
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Horrific crime. Went to Wendys and a movie after killing her.
Massachusetts teen accused of killing teacher indicted on murder, other charges
By Ray Sanchez, CNN
updated 8:17 PM EST, Thu November 21, 2013
(CNN) -- A Massachusetts grand jury Thursday indicted 14-year-old Philip Chism on charges of murder, aggravated rape and armed robbery in connection with last month's slaying of his algebra teacher, according to the Essex district attorney.
Citing Massachusetts law, prosecutors said they would ask that Chism be tried in an adult court.
"The indictments ... detail horrific and unspeakable acts," District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett said in a statement.
In a statement, the Ritzer family said: "We are devastated and heartbroken by the details of the horrific circumstances surrounding the death of our beautiful daughter and sister, Colleen."
Chism allegedly killed Colleen Ritzer, 24, on October 22 in the girl's bathroom of Danvers High School with a box cutter he brought to school, a source close to the investigation told CNN. Ritzer went to a regular girls bathroom on the second floor when someone was using the locked faculty bathroom.
Chism allegedly followed her in, according to the source. Ritzer was punched a few times before being killed with a box cutter, officials said.
Her body went into a recycling bin, then outside the school where it was tossed, the source said. Authorities eventually found a bin that apparently had been thrown off an embankment some 100 feet away from Ritzer's body.
After changing his clothes, Chism went to a Wendy's restaurant and a movie, according to the source.
Denise Regan, Chism's public defender, declined comment.
The armed robbery indictment alleges that Chism, armed with a box cutter, robbed Ritzer of credits cards, an iPhone and her underwear. The aggravated rape indictment alleges that he sexually assaulted her with an object.
Under the aggravated rape and armed robbery indictments, Chism was charged as a youthful offender, but prosecutors said they will move to join those charges with the murder case in Superior Court.
"This is the first step in a long process to secure justice for Ms. Ritzer and her family," Blodgett said.
A week after the slaying, about 400 Danvers High School students were among the estimated 1,000 people who gathered to pay final respects at the church where the family of popular math teacher worshiped.
Documents filed in a Tennessee court 12 years ago may shed light on Chism's past. The court papers showed that Chism's father agreed during a separation from his mother to have restricted time with his son, who was then 2, because of "prior physical and emotional abuse as well as alcohol abuse." The documents said the parents were attempting to reconcile.
Chism's uncle, Terrence Chism Blaine, told CNN in the days after the crime that the boy's parents are now separated and that the father -- a former military man -- now lives in Florida.
The suspect's mother, Diana Chism, last month released a statement through her son's attorney saying her "heart is broken for the Ritzer family and the loss of their daughter and sister Colleen Ritzer."
"Her son was born in love and is dear to her, very dear," the statement said.
http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/21/justice/massachusetts-danvers-school-killing-indictment/index.html?hpt=hp_t1
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I used to teach middle school... I can tell ya, there are some 12 year old that ARE the most evil, murderous SOB's you would never want to meet. No, they're not capable of adult intellect... but they are at least as dangerous, and possibly more, BECAUSE they aren't worried about jail.
This whole "he's only 140 pounds, he's a victim too..." Sorry, he's a stone killer, and he's lucky to be living in an era where at least he only has to contend with 20 years of prison. Try that shit back in the 1500s, it'd be the guillotine at 12 years old.
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Interesting case. I don't remember this one. Charged as an adult at age nine? :o
25 years ago, Pennsylvania boy Cameron Kocher shot and killed neighbor girl after losing to her in Nintendo game
Kocher gunned down little Jessica Carr with rifle as she rode snowmobile in rural Poconos town of Kresgeville, Pa. He was spared jail because of his age and made no further headlines since brutal 1989 slaying.
BY DAVID J. KRAJICEK / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
SUNDAY, MARCH 16, 2014
The case of Cameron Kocher (center) sparked fierce debate on whether he should be tried as adult for killing of little Jessica Carr.
A Nintendo butt-whuppin’ ruined Cameron Kocher’s day off.
The 9-year-old fourth-grader got a snow day on a March Monday 25 years ago in his rural Poconos hometown of Kresgeville, Pa.
When his parents left for work that morning, Kocher went next door on Hideaway Hill Road to the home of Richard and Trudy Ratti, where kids from the neighborhood had gathered.
A first-grader, Jessica Carr, 7, challenged Kocher to a bout of “Spy Hunter,” a video game in which players spray enemies with machine guns mounted on a speeding car.
Kocher must have thought he had an advantage. He was older, and he knew his way around guns.
His father, Keith, was a hunter and, like many country kids, the boy had been introduced to firearms. He favored camouflage clothing, and some called him Little Rambo.
But the younger girl was good at the game, and Kocher got mad when she beat him.
He was still steamed early that afternoon when Trudy Ratti ran the kids outside to play in the snow. Some of them jumped on the family’s snowmobile, but Kocher stomped home.
Alone there, he went to the second-floor master bedroom, retrieved a hidden key and unlocked his father’s gun cabinet, lined with 10 firearms. He removed a .35-caliber Marlin rifle, found the proper ammo in a separate locked drawer, and loaded a cartridge into the chamber.
Kocher opened a window, removed the screen and leveled the rifle on the noisy snowmobile moving slowly across the Ratti yard, 100 yards away. He found his target in the scope and squeezed off a shot.
The boy replaced the window screen, returned the rifle to the cabinet, and put the shell casing back in the ammo box.
A few minutes later, Richard Ratti phoned and ordered young Kocher to return to his house. Little Jessica Carr had been shot while riding on the back of the snowmobile, Ratti said, and they feared a sniper was loose in the area.
He was worried about Kocher’s safety.
The Ratti home was a scene of emotional bedlam, with kids wailing and praying over their friend, who lay dying in the living room. As Kocher walked past, he calmly said, “If you don’t think about it, you won’t be sad.” He sat down and played a video game by himself.
Later that afternoon, a state police trooper noticed a halfmoon-shaped cut on Kocher’s forehead — a wound from the recoil of the rifle scope, it turned out.
Investigators found the boy’s blood on the rifle and near the bedroom window redoubt. Two days after the shooting, the Allentown Morning Call announced to the world the latest American crime outrage: “9-Year-Old Arrested in Killing.”
No one so young had ever been charged as an adult with murder, and the case prompted national skull sessions about judicious punishment for kids who commit vile acts — and about justice for their victims.
As legal adversaries debated whether Kocher should be treated as a boy or a man, the sympathy scale seemed to tip toward the shooter and his parents.
Richard Ratti, whose 13-year-old daughter was on the snowmobile with Jessica Carr, said the pity was misplaced.
“You can’t feel as bad for the Kochers as you should for the Carrs,” he told a reporter.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/justice-story/boy-kills-neighbor-girl-nintendo-game-article-1.1723189#ixzz2wHELYQgC
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...
But some of these crimes are so serious that it's hard to conclude the kid didn't completely appreciate what he or she was doing.
No offense intended but I don't think that makes sense. I think the opposite is more likely; Some of these crimes are so serious that it's hard to conclude that a kid COULD completely appreciate what he (or she) had done.
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No offense intended but I don't think that makes sense. I think the opposite is more likely; Some of these crimes are so serious that it's hard to conclude that a kid COULD completely appreciate what he (or she) had done.
The level of seriousness includes the amount of planning and the specific nature of the crime, which = sophistication, which = the kid having a greater appreciation of his or her conduct.
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Nah, I'll bet this woman is not really quite as dead as if she'd been strangled by a 30 year old.
Let the kid go. The womans family should understand.
LOL. Sarcasm can be powerful. I like it.
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The level of seriousness includes the amount of planning and the specific nature of the crime, which = sophistication, which = the kid having a greater appreciation of his or her conduct.
Still seems wrong to me; Being mentally ill can easily mean not having complete appreciation for one's criminal conduct but wouldn't seem to preclude one from being able to plan a crime. The greater the crime, the less likely the appreciation, if you ask me. It sure doesn't seem like many of these kinds of kids thought too much about possible consequences nor did they plan so well that they almost got away with it.
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A person who commits a crime of this severity is not normal and will most likely never be a functional member of society.
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A person who commits a crime of this severity is not normal and will most likely never be a functional member of society.
Word.
That scary looking 15-year old black kid needs a Cus D'amato in his life...about 5 years ago, probably.
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Word.
That scary looking 15-year old black kid needs a Cus D'amato in his life...about 5 years ago, probably.
sociopaths can never be cured, ever.
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Still seems wrong to me; Being mentally ill can easily mean not having complete appreciation for one's criminal conduct but wouldn't seem to preclude one from being able to plan a crime. The greater the crime, the less likely the appreciation, if you ask me. It sure doesn't seem like many of these kinds of kids thought too much about possible consequences nor did they plan so well that they almost got away with it.
Depends on the mental illness.
I do not like the idea of treating kids like adults, but was only making a point about the level of sophistication.
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Depends on the mental illness. Let's do not like the idea of treating kids like adults, but was only making a point about the level of sophistication.
premeditation and concealment are a good indication a perpetrator is in possession of enough of his faculties to be held responsible for his crime. Let's not mistake a person who is a sloppy criminal for one who is not aware of the severity of the crime committed.
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premeditation and concealment are a good indication a perpetrator is in possession of enough of his faculties to be held responsible for his crime. Let's not mistake a person who is a sloppy criminal for one who is not aware of the severity of the crime committed.
True, it is a good indicator. The problem is where we draw the line between adults and kids. I think 9 is too young, even though that kid knew exactly what he was doing when he loaded the shotgun and took the girl out like a sniper. Cannot see treating a kid that young like an adult.
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Depends on the mental illness.
I do not like the idea of treating kids like adults, but was only making a point about the level of sophistication.
Fair point, then, I think.
The more sophisticated they are the better they'd probably be at acting sane enough to be let out earlier than they should be at some point down the road. That's how it plays out on Dexter, anyway, lol.
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True, it is a good indicator. The problem is where we draw the line between adults and kids. I think 9 is too young, even though that kid knew exactly what he was doing when he loaded the shotgun and took the girl out like a sniper. Cannot see treating a kid that young like an adult.
I don't even know if it's possible to treat them. Its a wiring problem. Keeping them away from society might be the only way to insure they don't hurt anyone.
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I don't even know if it's possible to treat them. Its a wiring problem. Keeping them away from society might be the only way to insure they don't hurt anyone.
If you're talking about a true sociopath, you might be right. Although I don't really know if it's possible to tell when they're so young. Very difficult cases.
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Boy Accused in Fatal Stabbing to Have Mental Exam
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Aug 11, 2014
Associated Press
A judge on Monday ordered a mental competency exam for a 12-year-old boy charged with murder in the stabbing of a 9-year-old boy at a western Michigan playground.
It happened at a hearing in Kent County Family Court. Defense lawyer Charles Boekeloo told Judge G. Patrick Hillary that his client was waiving his right to a probable cause hearing, clearing the way for a trial.
Authorities say the 12-year-old confessed to stabbing Michael Connor Verkerke on Aug. 4 in Kentwood, near Grand Rapids.
The Associated Press isn't naming the 12-year-old because of his age. He's designated as an adult in the juvenile court system, meaning he'd be sentenced as a juvenile if convicted and then resentenced as an adult once he turns 21.
Michael's funeral is 11:30 a.m. Wednesday at Cornerstone Church in Caledonia Township.
State mental health experts will examine the 12-year-old and report on whether they believe he is mentally competent to stand trial. That is expected to bring a delay of several months.
"There is nothing typical about this case," Boekeloo told The Grand Rapids Press.
Witnesses told investigators that four children were playing when one of them pulled a knife and stabbed Michael in the back.
The 12-year-old told an ambulance crew he had been planning the incident for a year and wanted to take someone with him when he killed himself, police told the newspaper.
The boy then left the playground and approached a man at a nearby house to call 911. Witnesses said the boy presented his wrists to be cuffed when police arrived and said he wanted to die.
"Arrest me," the 12-year-old said to officers, putting his hands above his head, according to a Kentwood police report. "I want to die. I'm tired of life."
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/judge-orders-mental-exam-murder-suspect-12-24938194
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Some kids can't be cured or rehabilitated. Is it really humane to keep them on death row and locked up all their lives (50+) years? Hard to say. But all you got to do is look at the Lionel Tate case and see how incarceration doesn't deter them from criminal acts again when they are released.
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Way too young IMO.
Pennsylvania boy, 10, charged as adult in killing of 90-year-old woman
Published October 14, 2014
FoxNews.com
A 10-year-old Pennsylvania boy was charged as an adult Monday night in the beating death of a 90-year-old woman who was being taken care of by the boy’s grandfather, The Pocono Record reported.
The boy, who was not identified in the report, detailed the alleged attack to a state trooper. He reportedly said he held a cane to Helen Novak's throat and punched her numerous times, according to the affidavit. An autopsy performed on the body confirmed that the woman suffered blunt-force trauma around her neck and her death was ruled a homicide.
The report said that the boy was visiting his grandfather Saturday who lives in Honesdale, which is just outside Scranton. His grandfather had reportedly cared for the woman. The boy's mother told police that her son told her he went into the woman's room and she yelled at him, the paper reported, citing a district attorney press release. The boy reportedly told his mom that he lost his temper.
The boy, at some point, alerted his grandfather that the woman was bleeding from her mouth. The grandfather checked on the woman and determined she was OK, but he checked later and she was unresponsive, the report said. When asked by his grandfather if he did anything to the woman, the boy said, "No," the report said.
The Record's report said that homicide is excluded from the juvenile code and suspects are automatically charged as an adult.
The boy is being held at the Wayne County Correctional Facility and will see a judge on Oct. 22.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/10/14/pennsylvania-boy-10-charged-as-adult-in-killing-0-year-old-woman/?intcmp=latestnews
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Wow. We have come a long way.
Exonerated After Execution: Judge Tosses Teen's Murder Conviction
BY LISA RIORDAN SEVILLE
Seventy years after South Carolina executed a 14-year-old boy so small he sat on a phone book in the electric chair, a circuit court judge threw out his murder conviction.
On Wednesday morning, Judge Carmen Mullins vacated the decision against George Stinney Jr., a black teen who was convicted of beating two young white girls to death in the small town of Alcolu in 1944.
Civil rights advocates have spent years trying to get the case reopened, arguing that Stinney's confession was coerced. At the time of his arrest, Stinney weighed just 95 pounds. Officials said Stinney had admitted beating the girls, 11 and 8 years old, with a railroad spike.
In a 2009 affidavit, Stinney's sister said she had been with him on the day of the murders and he could not have committed them.
Stinney was put on trial and then executed within three months of the killings. His trial lasted three hours, and a jury of 12 white men took 10 minutes to find him guilty.
He is often cited as the youngest person executed in the U.S. in the 20th century. At the time of the crime, 14 was the legal age of criminal responsibility in the state.
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/investigations/exonerated-after-execution-judge-tosses-teens-murder-conviction-n270176
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Wow, what a sad thread.
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The kid is probably a sociopath and charging him with murder is probably for the best, however.............?
I thought the whole idea of deciding what year a child becomes an "adult" means that some one younger, is by definition not an adult and as such should not be treated like one in the eyes of the law.
Does this now mean that 15 year old girls can consent to having sex or are they still children but this 15 year old boy isn't? Can someone just "request a waiver" after banging one of them? I'm being facetious of course but the point is, why go to the trouble of making broad sweeping rules and then pick and chose who those rules apply to when they become inconvenient?
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The kid is probably a sociopath and charging him with murder is probably for the best, however.............?
I thought the whole idea of deciding what year a child becomes an "adult" means that some one younger, is by definition not an adult and as such should not be treated like one in the eyes of the law.
Does this now mean that 15 year old girls can consent to having sex or are they still children but this 15 year old boy isn't? Can someone just "request a waiver" after banging one of them? I'm being facetious of course but the point is, why go to the trouble of making broad sweeping rules and then pick and chose who those rules apply to when they become inconvenient?
Good point. Never thought about that comparison, but it makes sense that if we have a bright-line rule when it comes to consent, should have also have one for treating kids like adults for criminal purposes.
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Myself, I'd say because one is seen as a part of the routine, with much more limited circumstances to consider than the other.
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9-year-old boy arrested in Post Falls
Posted: Jan 09, 2015
Updated: Jan 12, 2015
by Victor Correa, KHQ Local News ReporterCONNECT
Kootenai Co. Prosecutor on issuing arrest warrant for 9-year-old boy: 'I regret this having taken place'
POST FALLS, Idaho -
Post Falls Chief of Police Scott Haug says he was very surprised when an arrest warrant landed on his desk earlier this week. The warrant was for a "failure to appear," not uncommon. But the perpetrator was a nine year old boy.
Kootenai County Prosecuting Attorney Barry McHugh, who issued the arrest warrant, was not able to comment because the case involves someone younger than 18 years old. However, Haug says the warrant was issued because it was the second time the 9 year old missed his day in court.
What was the original charge? Stealing a pack of gum.
Haug says this is the first time in his 30 years in law enforcement that he's ever seen an arrest warrant issued for someone as young as nine.
"I was surprised that it had gotten to this level," says Haug.
Haug also says it isn't uncommon for the owner of a business to press charges against those who steal, even if it's for something as small as a pack of gum. When KHQ asked Haug why the 9 year old failed to appear, he says it was because the family had no way to get him to the courthouse.
"Had we known that before the court date we would have provided something for the family," says Haug. "I wish we would have had more information that way we could have provided some sort of assistance."
The child is currently in the Juvenile Detention Center where he will soon stand before a judge. Prosecutors told KHQ they can't say when that's expected to happen.
http://www.khq.com/story/27815431/9-year-old-boy-arrested-in-post-falls
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An arrest warrant for a nine year old who stole gum. ::)
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An arrest warrant for a nine year old who stole gum. ::)
Pretty dang stupid.
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Pretty dang stupid.
And they've got him in a juvenile detention center.
Like I said, and I know you think I'm crazy, but we're moving towards a police state. It's generations away for sure, but it's the inevitable result of tens of thousands of laws, rules, and regulations being added year after year.
Topped off, of course, with mindless DA's and mindless cops who do shit like this under the justification that the law is the law. ::)
oh boy...
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And they've got him in a juvenile detention center.
Like I said, and I know you think I'm crazy, but we're moving towards a police state. It's generations away for sure, but it's the inevitable result of tens of thousands of laws, rules, and regulations being added year after year.
Topped off, of course, with mindless DA's and mindless cops who do shit like this under the justification that the law is the law. ::)
oh boy...
I don't think you're crazy. I just don't see us being anywhere near a police state. I agree we have a ton of laws, rules, etc. on the books and they can be onerous at times. But we have freedom. You can live anywhere you want. You can work anywhere you want. You can vacation anywhere you want. You can be a bum if you want. We have free speech. Freedom of religion. A free press. Due process, and a host of other freedoms and protections, which means the government cannot just arrest you and hold you in prison for no reason. Nothing like Kafka. That doesn't sound like a police state (or a country headed towards one) to me.
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From my point of view, every year this kid is in prison, the society loses input to the GNP.
-Hedge
Firing squad.
Bullets are cheaper and serve the victim's family best.
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Trial to begin for teen charged in teacher's rape, killing
By Associated Press
POSTED: Oct 4, 2015
BOSTON >> One day in the fall of 2013, Colleen Ritzer asked one of her 9th-grade algebra students to stay after school. Hours later, the body of the popular, 24-year-old teacher was found in nearby woods, partly covered by leaves. She had been raped and her throat had been slit with a box cutter. Near her body was a note reading, "I hate you all."
Philip Chism, then 14, was charged in her killing, shocking students and teachers who knew Ritzer as a bubbly, enthusiastic teacher and Chism as a quiet boy and standout soccer player who had recently moved to Massachusetts from Tennessee.
Two years later, Chism is headed to trial as an adult on rape, robbery and murder charges. Jury selection begins Wednesday in Essex Superior Court in Salem.
Chism's lawyers plan to use a mental health defense, although they have not revealed specifics. His mother told police her son had been under stress following her divorce from his father and their move from Clarksville, Tennessee, to Danvers, a town of 26,000 about 25 miles north of Boston.
A student who was in Ritzer's class with Chism said he was drawing in a notebook instead of taking notes on Oct. 22, 2013.
"She came over and said, 'I didn't know you draw,' and he said, 'yes,' then later on, she said, 'Can you stay after with me?'" Rania Rhaddaoui said two days after Ritzer's body was found.
Another student who was in the classroom after school that day said she heard Ritzer and Chism talking. The student, whose name was blocked out in court documents, told police that when Ritzer mentioned Tennessee, Chism appeared "visibly upset." When Ritzer noticed his reaction, she changed the subject, but the student said Chism then began talking to himself.
Chism's lawyers have retained, Dr. Richard Dudley Jr., a well-known forensic psychiatrist, to testify as an expert. Dudley has testified for a collection of high-profile defendants, including Joshua Komisarjevsky, one of two men convicted in the 2007 murders of a Connecticut woman and her two daughters; Brian Nichols, the Georgia man who killed a judge and three other people after escaping during his 2005 rape trial; and Colin Ferguson, the Long Island railroad shooter who killed six people and wounded 19 others in 1993.
Insanity defenses rarely succeed in Massachusetts, but some legal observers say Chism's youth might make some jurors more willing to consider a mental health defense.
"I would really think that youth is going to be a huge factor. Part of the argument would be that Chism couldn't control whatever disease or defect he had," said Daniel Medwed, a law professor at Northeastern University.
"I assume the defense will tie it into research on adolescent brain development, in particular, adolescents have a difficult time calculating the future and having a sense of the ramifications on their future lives."
Prosecutors are expected to show the jury school surveillance video in which they say Chism is seen following Ritzer into a school bathroom, wearing gloves and a hood, then walking out of the bathroom alone 12 minutes later.
The video also shows Chism pulling a recycling barrel through the school and outside, according to search warrant documents filed in court. The barrel was found near Ritzer's body. Authorities said she was sexually assaulted twice, once with a stick.
Chism was found hours later, walking along Route 1 in neighboring Topsfield. Police there found a box cutter with blood on it inside Chism's backpack. During a pretrial hearing, an officer testified that when Chism was asked whose blood it was, he replied, "It's the girl's."
Chism also had Ritzer's identification, credit cards and a pair of women's underwear in his backpack.
Prosecutors are expected to present that evidence to the jury, but they won't be allowed to tell the jury about a confession he allegedly gave to Danvers police. Judge David Lowy ruled that Chism did not fully understand his constitutional rights before he spoke to them.
In the videotaped interview, Chism told police Ritzer provoked the attack with a "trigger" word, which he would not disclose.
"After she insulted me, that's when I became the teacher," Chism said, according to a description Lowy gave in his written ruling.
http://www.staradvertiser.com/news/breaking/20151004_Trial_to_begin_for_teen_charged_in_teachers_rape_killing.html
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Defense acknowledges that Massachusetts teen killed teacher
Published November 16, 2015
Associated Press
(http://a57.foxnews.com/global.fncstatic.com/static/managed/img/876/493/TEACHKILL111615.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
Philip Chism is charged with raping and killing his math teacher and has been declared competent to stand trial. (AP)
SALEM, Mass. – A Massachusetts teenager charged with killing and raping his high school math teacher "did unspeakable things to her body" and was "severely mentally ill," his lawyer told jurors during opening statements on Monday.
Denise Regan told jurors that Philip Chism killed Colleen Ritzer at Danvers High School on Oct. 22, 2013, but that the teenager was suffering from a psychotic disorder. Regan said Chism, who had moved to Massachusetts from Tennessee, was "severely mentally ill," and had suffered from a psychotic disorder since the age of 10.
Now 16, Chism is being tried as an adult in Essex Superior Court in Salem. He was 14 when Ritzer's body was found in the woods near the high school, her throat slit. He has pleaded not guilty by reason of mental defect.
Jury selection was suspended several weeks while the judge considered Chism's mental competency before finding the teenager competent to understand the court proceedings and assist with his defense.
A prosecutor in the case told jurors that Chism went to school on the day Ritzer died with a "terrible purpose." During opening statements, the prosecutor described Chism's movements, saying the teen came to school with a backpack containing a box cutter, gloves and a mask, followed Ritzer into the girls' bathroom after school, then strangled her, cut her throat with the box cutter, raped and killed her.
A police officer who found a bloody box cutter inside Chism's backpack testified that when he asked the teen whose blood it was, the teen replied, "It's the girl's."
Topsfield Officer Neal Hovey was one of the first witnesses in Chism's trial.
Hovey said he spotted Chism walking along a highway and brought him to a police station where investigators found a bloody box cutter in a woman's wallet inside Chism's backpack.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2015/11/16/trial-teenager-charged-in-teacher-death-to-begin/?intcmp=hplnws
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Massachusetts teen convicted in rape, murder of high school math teacher
Published December 15, 2015
Associated Press
SALEM, Mass. – A Massachusetts teenager was convicted Tuesday of raping and killing his high school math teacher when he was 14.
Philip Chism followed his 9th grade algebra teacher, Colleen Ritzer, into a school bathroom, strangled her, stabbed her at least 16 times and raped her.
Chism, now 16, was convicted of a raping Ritzer inside the bathroom but was acquitted of a second rape, committed with a tree branch in woods near the school where Chism put her body. He was also convicted of armed robbery for stealing Ritzer's credit cards and her underwear.
Chism stared straight ahead and did not have any visible reaction as the verdicts were read in Salem Superior Court. His mother declined to talk to reporters as she left the courthouse.
Standing later with the district attorney that prosecuted the case, Ritzer's parents said the verdicts mark a new phase in their lives in which they hope to honor their 24-year-old daughter's legacy.
"This guilty verdict, while the beginning of justice for Colleen, is certainly no cause for celebration as there can never be true justice for the crime committed," said Thomas Ritzer, her father. "There remains a tremendous absence in our lives, one that sadly can never be replaced."
The family, he added, will still be reminded of the crimes as Chism appeals the case and is eligible for parole at some point. "We will carry on and do our very best to find the good in every day," said Peggie Ritzer, the victim's mother.
During the trial, his lawyer admitted Chism killed Ritzer, but said he was suffering from severe mental illness and was not criminally responsible for his actions. A psychiatrist who testified for the defense said Chism was hearing voices and in the throes of a psychotic episode when he killed Ritzer.
Ritzer was a popular teacher at Danvers High School, about 25 miles north of Boston, doing her dream job, teaching math, Assistant District Attorney Kate MacDougall told jurors in her opening statement.
On Oct. 22, 2013, Ritzer asked Chism to stay after school. Another student who also stayed late that day testified that Ritzer tried to engage Chism — a student who had recently moved to Massachusetts — in talk about how his new community compared with his old town of Clarksville, Tennessee. The student said Chism became visibly upset and Ritzer eventually changed the subject.
A short time later, Ritzer left the classroom. Jurors were shown chilling surveillance video that showed Ritzer walking down the hallway to the bathroom. Seconds later, Chism is seen poking his head out of her classroom and looking down the hall.
He then goes back into the classroom, but comes right back out with his hood on. Chism is then shown putting on a pair of gloves as he walks into the bathroom. Minutes later, he is shown emerging from the bathroom carrying the black pants Ritzer was wearing.
A bloody box cutter, mask, gloves and a hooded sweatshirt were later found in his backpack by police who found Chism walking beside a highway in neighboring Topsfield.
Chism's lawyers had said he should be acquitted of the rape in the woods, arguing Ritzer was already dead by then. Prosecutors, however, had said Chism did not deliver the fatal stab wounds to her neck until he brought her outside.
Chism was tried as an adult. He faces life in prison on the first-degree murder charge. As a juvenile, he cannot receive a life sentence without parole following decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court and the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts. Adults convicted of first-degree murder in Massachusetts automatically receive life without parole.
Judge David Lowy set a status hearing for Dec. 22 to discuss sentencing.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2015/12/15/massachusetts-teen-philip-chism-convicted-murder-rape-in-killing-his-high/?intcmp=hpbt2
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Supreme Court justices extend bar on automatic life terms for teenagers
Published January 25, 2016
Associated Press
(http://a57.foxnews.com/images.foxnews.com/content/fox-news/politics/2016/01/25/supreme-court-justices-extend-bar-on-automatic-life-terms-for-teenagers/_jcr_content/par/featured-media/media-0.img.jpg/876/493/1453739710756.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
Oct. 13, 2015: People line up outside of the Supreme Court in Washington as the justices began to discuss sentences for young prison 'lifers.' (AP)
WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court ruled Monday that people serving life terms for murders they committed as teenagers must have a chance to seek their freedom, a decision that could affect more than 1,000 inmates.
The justices voted 6-3 to extend a ruling from 2012 that struck down automatic life terms with no chance of parole for teenage killers. Now, even those who were convicted long ago must be considered for parole or given a new sentence.
The court ruled in the case of Henry Montgomery, who has been in prison more than 50 years, since he killed a sheriff's deputy as a 17-year-old in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in 1963.
Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing the majority opinion, said that "prisoners like Montgomery must be given the opportunity to show their crime did not reflect irreparable corruption; and if it did not, their hope for some years of life outside prison walls must be restored."
Kennedy said states do not have to go so far as to resentence people serving life terms. Instead, the states can offer parole hearings with no guarantee of release.
Louisiana, Michigan and Pennsylvania have more than 1,000 people serving life sentences for murders they committed before their 18th birthday, according to Michigan's Supreme Court filing in Montgomery's case. They are among the few states that have refused to extend the Supreme Court's ruling from 2012.
Monday's decision does not expressly foreclose judges from sentencing teenagers to a lifetime in prison. But the Supreme Court has previously said such sentences should be rare, and only for the most heinous crimes.
In dissent, Justice Antonin Scalia said the ruling "is just a devious way of eliminating life without parole for juvenile offenders." Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas joined Scalia's dissent.
Four years ago, the justices struck down automatic life sentences with no chance of release for teenage killers, but did not answer then whether the ruling in Miller v. Alabama should be extended retroactively to Montgomery and hundreds of other inmates whose convictions are final.
In the 5-4 decision in 2012, Justice Elena Kagan wrote for the majority that judges weighing prison terms for young offenders must take into account "the mitigating qualities of youth," among them immaturity and the failure to understand fully the consequences of their actions.
Chief Justice John Roberts dissented from the 2012 decision barring automatic life sentences for young killers, but he joined the majority on Monday along with Justices Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and Kagan.
Through legislative action or court rulings, 18 states have allowed inmates like Montgomery to be given new prison sentences or to ask for their release, according to The Sentencing Project. Louisiana is among seven states that had declined to apply the Supreme Court ruling retroactively.
The outcome in Montgomery's case is the latest in a line of Supreme Court decisions that have limited states in the way they punish juveniles. Kennedy also wrote the 2005 decision that outlawed the death penalty for juveniles. The justices also have barred life without parole sentences for people convicted of crimes other than murder that were committed before they turned 18.
The court often applies groundbreaking decisions in criminal law retroactively. Kennedy rejected Louisiana's argument that the Alabama case should not be viewed as quite that important because the court only declared unconstitutional such sentences where judges lack discretion, and specifically did not bar judges from sentencing juveniles to life in prison after considering individual circumstances.
Montgomery's case highlights some of the problems that inmate advocates say plague the criminal justice system generally. Montgomery is African-American, and he was tried for killing the white deputy in a time of racial tension and reported cross burnings in Baton Rouge.
The State Times newspaper of Baton Rouge ran a front-page headline after Montgomery's arrest: "Negro Held in Deputy's Murder Here." The story noted that "more than 60 Negroes were detained" in a parish-wide manhunt.
The Louisiana Supreme Court threw out Montgomery's first conviction because he did not get a fair trial. He was convicted and sentenced to life after a second trial.
The case is Montgomery v. Louisiana, 14-280.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/01/25/supreme-court-justices-extend-bar-on-automatic-life-terms-for-teenagers.html?intcmp=hplnws
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Justice Scalia Calls Out A Colleague For Flip-Flopping On Juvenile Justice
"Mission accomplished," he snapped at Justice Kennedy.
01/28/2016
Justice Antonin Scalia predicted some liberal implications down the road. He's been right on that before.
Justice Antonin Scalia didn't make it to the Supreme Court this week, but he did leave a snippy note for Justice Anthony Kennedy in a major juvenile justice case decided Monday.
The decision in Montgomery v. Louisiana made retroactive a 2012 ruling that said it's unconstitutional to automatically sentence children to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Monday's decision split the court 6-3, with Kennedy writing for the majority and Scalia for the dissenters.
What the decision means in practice is that potentially thousands of lifers -- adults who were sentenced to die in prison for crimes they committed as kids -- may be granted hearings at which they can argue they should receive mercy.
Scalia wasn't happy with the ruling, as he hasn't been in other cases where the court has shown a little leniency to certain classes of offenders. To explain his beef, he gave Kennedy a history lesson -- along with his usual sarcasm and snide commentary.
First, he went back to the 2012 decision, Miller v. Alabama, which prohibits sentences of life without the possibility of parole for "all but the rarest of children, those whose crimes reflect irreparable corruption."
In that ruling, Scalia said, the Supreme Court had bent over backward to restrict the states as little as possible.
He quoted directly from Miller: "Our decision does not categorically bar a penalty for a class of offenders or type of crime. Instead, it mandates only that a sentencer follow a certain process -- considering an offender's youth and attendant characteristics -- before imposing a particular penalty."
In other words, Scalia said, all the 2012 decision did was tell states that they must guarantee youthful defendants a procedure at the time of trial in which they might be granted a chance for future release. Nothing more, nothing less.
Justice Anthony Kennedy was the target of Scalia's legal ire this time around.
But Scalia said that Kennedy's opinion in the new case dances around this clear language in an effort to make Miller apply retroactively. In so doing, Scalia charged, the court goes beyond the original decision, "rewriting" it in such a way that it now imposes a heavy burden on states.
"How wonderful," he mused, before contending that courts now face the "knotty legal question" of how to go back in time with every single once-youthful offender who's now serving life, to consider re-sentencing them to a less punitive term -- all while weighing whether the inmate was incorrigible at the time of the crime. (Henry Montgomery, the man at the center of the case, was sentenced nearly 50 years ago.)
"What silliness," Scalia said, deriding the new regime as "a practical impossibility."
Of course, Kennedy's majority opinion offered a way to deal with the impracticalities -- by granting parole hearings in which the board may focus on who the inmates are now, not who they were as teenagers. That kind of micromanagement really set off Scalia, for here he saw an agenda at work.
"This whole exercise, this whole distortion of Miller, is just a devious way of eliminating life without parole for juvenile offenders," he declared.
Then came the coup de grâce.
Scalia pointed Kennedy to the latter's own majority opinion in the landmark Roper v. Simmons, which held in 2005 that sentencing juveniles to the death penalty is unconstitutional. In that case, Kennedy wrote that life without parole remained a severe enough alternative for those youths the state could no longer kill.
"How could the majority -- in an opinion written by the very author of Roper -- now say that punishment is also unconstitutional?" Scalia wondered, essentially accusing Kennedy of flip-flopping on life without parole.
"And then, in Godfather fashion," Scalia continued, "the majority makes state legislatures an offer they can't refuse: Avoid all the utterly impossible nonsense we have prescribed by simply permitting juvenile homicide offenders to be considered for parole."
Not that Scalia never flip-flops himself. But he has a point here: Sending all those lifers to the parole board sounds much easier than trying to conduct proper re-sentencing hearings in so many old cases.
Plus, it is anyone's guess what lower courts will do with the Supreme Court's new "permanent incorrigibility" requirement for sentencing youth to die in prison. It sounds like a high standard, one that will likely lead to heaps of litigation over which youthful offenders should or shouldn't face life without parole. (Which, it should be noted, remains constitutional.)
If discouraging life without parole was the majority's intent all along, then Scalia's closing words could well reverberate: "Mission accomplished."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/scalia-kennedy-juvenile-justice_us_56a8ea1fe4b0947efb661ba7
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14-Year-Old Boy Charged in Father's Killing, School Shooting
Friday, 30 Sep 2016
A 14-year-old South Carolina boy was charged as a juvenile Friday with murder and three counts of attempted murder after authorities say he killed his father and opened fire on students at a playground, wounding three people.
The boy did not show any emotion as he walked into the courtroom wearing a yellow jumpsuit. He did not have handcuffs or leg shackles on. A judge ordered the teen to continue to be held.
His mother sat on the front row during the brief hearing and left the courtroom sobbing and leaning on another woman.
The Associated Press typically does not identify juveniles charged with crimes. Authorities have not released a motive for the school shooting or killing.
Authorities say the teen shot his 47-year-old father at their home on Wednesday afternoon before driving a pickup truck 3 miles down a country road to Townville Elementary. The teen — who is not old enough to have a driver's license — had to make only two turns to arrive at the red brick school, where he crashed the truck, got out and started firing during recess.
Bullets struck two students and a first-grade teacher, and the building was immediately placed on lock down.
Anderson 4 Superintendent Joanne Avery said staff saved lives by flawlessly implementing active-shooter training drills conducted with students at Townville Elementary, most recently as just last week.
Though shot in the shoulder, the teacher "was with-it enough" to close the door, lock it and barricade the students, Avery said.
"If he'd gotten in the school, it would've been a different scenario," she said.
The shooter then fired toward students on the playground but missed. A teacher who heard the first gunshot was able to get those students safely inside, Avery said.
Relatives of one of the wounded, 6-year-old Jacob Hall, said he remained on life support in a hospital. His family issued a statement late Thursday saying the boy sustained a major brain injury due to the amount of blood he lost after being shot in the leg.
His older brother, Gerald Gambrell, told The Greenville News that the family is "hoping for a miracle."
A sign outside a diner conveyed the sentiments of an entire community: "Pray for Jacob. Pray for Townville."
The shot teacher and another student who was hit in the foot were treated and released from a hospital, officials said.
Classes are scheduled to resume at the school Monday.
http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/South-Carolina-School-Shooting-Charged-Juvenile/2016/09/30/id/751086/#ixzz4LmJLfujX
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Supreme Court Rejects Restrictions On Life Without Parole For Juveniles
April 22, 2021
NINA TOTENBERG
The U.S. Supreme Court's new conservative majority made a U-turn on Thursday, ruling by a 6-3 vote, that a judge need not make a finding of "permanent incorrigibility" before sentencing a juvenile offender to life without parole.
It was the first time in almost two decades that the high court has deviated from rules establishing more leniency for juvenile offenders, even those convicted of murder.
At the center of the case was Brett Jones, now 31, who was 15 when he stabbed his grandfather to death during a fight about Jones' girlfriend. He was convicted of murder, and a judge sentenced him to life without parole.
"In such a case, a discretionary sentencing system is both constitutionally necessary and constitutionally sufficient," the court's conservative justices wrote.
Writing for the majority, Justice Brett Kavanaugh said: "As this case again demonstrates, any homicide, and particularly a homicide committed by an individual under 18, is a horrific tragedy for all involved and for all affected."
He added: "Determining the proper sentence in such a case raises profound questions of morality and social policy. The States, not the federal courts, make those broad moral and policy judgments in the first instance when enacting their sentencing laws. And state sentencing judges and juries then determine the proper sentence in individual cases in light of the facts and circumstances of the offense, and the background of the offender."
Over the past two decades, the law on juvenile sentencing has changed significantly. The Supreme Court — primed by research that shows the brains of juveniles are not fully developed, and that they are likely to lack impulse control — has issued a half dozen opinions holding that juveniles are less culpable than adults for their acts. And the court has also ruled that some of the harshest punishments for acts committed by children are unconstitutionally cruel and unusual punishment.
After striking down the death penalty for juvenile offenders, the court, in a series of decisions, limited life without parole sentences to the rarest cases — those juvenile offenders convicted of murder who are so incorrigible that there is no hope for their rehabilitation.
But all of those decisions were issued when the makeup of the court was quite different than it is now. This case was the first time the court has heard arguments in a juvenile sentencing case with three Trump appointees on the bench, including new Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who replaced the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Previously, Justice Anthony Kennedy, who retired in 2018, repeatedly was the deciding vote in cases involving life sentences and other harsh punishments for juvenile offenders. But with Kennedy retired and replaced by Kavanaugh, and with Ginsburg replaced by Barrett, the court in this case indicated that it is not inclined to go the extra mile to protect juvenile offenders from the harshest punishments.
"It's like the wind was blowing one way and now it's blowing in the opposite direction," says Donald Ayer, a former prosecutor and deputy attorney general in Republican administrations. He and other former prosecutors and judges, including two former Republican U.S. Attorneys General, filed a brief siding with Jones in this case.
Jones was originally sentenced to life without parole in 2004, but when the Supreme Court ruled that those, like Jones, who committed crimes when they were minors could not be automatically sentenced to life terms, he had to be resentenced. By then, he had spent a decade in prison, had graduated from high school, and earned a record as a model prisoner.
At his resentencing hearing, the judge did consider Jones' youth at the time of the crime, but again sentenced him to life without parole. The judge did not make any finding that Jones was so incorrigible that he had no hope of rehabilitation.
Jones' lawyer appealed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, contending that consideration of a defendant's youth is not enough and that Jones, now in his 30s, should have at least a chance at parole because he has shown he is capable of rehabilitation.
Twenty-five states ban life without parole for juveniles entirely. And six more states do not have anyone serving that sentence for a crime committed when a juvenile. But 19 states do allow life without parole for juvenile murderers.
In a withering dissent Thursday, Justice Sonia Sotomayor used language from Justice Kavanaugh's past opinions to write that the court's decision was "an abrupt break from precedent." She accused he majority of using "contortions" and "distortions" to "circumvent" legal precedent. The majority, she said, "is fooling no one."
The court's previous rulings, she wrote, require that most children be spared from punishments that give "no chance for fulfillment outside prison walls" and "no hope." She quoted Jones as saying at his resentencing hearing, "I've pretty much taken every avenue that I could possibly take ... to rehabilitate myself ... I can't change what I've done. I can just try to show ... I've become a grown man."
Thursday's ruling will certainly make it more difficult for juvenile offenders like Jones to show judges they deserve another chance at freedom somewhere down the road, says Cardozo Law School's Kathryn Miller. "It's going to be much harder to convince judges" that evidence of rehabilitation is relevant, she says.
"A lot of times these judges really want to still focus on the facts of the crime" even though it is years or decades later, she said. "They're not interested in the rehabilitation narrative."
Neither, it seems, is the newly constituted conservative Supreme Court majority.
https://www.npr.org/2021/04/22/989822872/supreme-court-rejects-restrictions-on-life-without-parole-for-juveniles
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Supreme Court Rejects Restrictions On Life Without Parole For Juveniles
April 22, 2021
NINA TOTENBERG
The U.S. Supreme Court's new conservative majority made a U-turn on Thursday, ruling by a 6-3 vote, that a judge need not make a finding of "permanent incorrigibility" before sentencing a juvenile offender to life without parole.
It was the first time in almost two decades that the high court has deviated from rules establishing more leniency for juvenile offenders, even those convicted of murder.
At the center of the case was Brett Jones, now 31, who was 15 when he stabbed his grandfather to death during a fight about Jones' girlfriend. He was convicted of murder, and a judge sentenced him to life without parole.
"In such a case, a discretionary sentencing system is both constitutionally necessary and constitutionally sufficient," the court's conservative justices wrote.
Writing for the majority, Justice Brett Kavanaugh said: "As this case again demonstrates, any homicide, and particularly a homicide committed by an individual under 18, is a horrific tragedy for all involved and for all affected."
He added: "Determining the proper sentence in such a case raises profound questions of morality and social policy. The States, not the federal courts, make those broad moral and policy judgments in the first instance when enacting their sentencing laws. And state sentencing judges and juries then determine the proper sentence in individual cases in light of the facts and circumstances of the offense, and the background of the offender."
Over the past two decades, the law on juvenile sentencing has changed significantly. The Supreme Court — primed by research that shows the brains of juveniles are not fully developed, and that they are likely to lack impulse control — has issued a half dozen opinions holding that juveniles are less culpable than adults for their acts. And the court has also ruled that some of the harshest punishments for acts committed by children are unconstitutionally cruel and unusual punishment.
After striking down the death penalty for juvenile offenders, the court, in a series of decisions, limited life without parole sentences to the rarest cases — those juvenile offenders convicted of murder who are so incorrigible that there is no hope for their rehabilitation.
But all of those decisions were issued when the makeup of the court was quite different than it is now. This case was the first time the court has heard arguments in a juvenile sentencing case with three Trump appointees on the bench, including new Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who replaced the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Previously, Justice Anthony Kennedy, who retired in 2018, repeatedly was the deciding vote in cases involving life sentences and other harsh punishments for juvenile offenders. But with Kennedy retired and replaced by Kavanaugh, and with Ginsburg replaced by Barrett, the court in this case indicated that it is not inclined to go the extra mile to protect juvenile offenders from the harshest punishments.
"It's like the wind was blowing one way and now it's blowing in the opposite direction," says Donald Ayer, a former prosecutor and deputy attorney general in Republican administrations. He and other former prosecutors and judges, including two former Republican U.S. Attorneys General, filed a brief siding with Jones in this case.
Jones was originally sentenced to life without parole in 2004, but when the Supreme Court ruled that those, like Jones, who committed crimes when they were minors could not be automatically sentenced to life terms, he had to be resentenced. By then, he had spent a decade in prison, had graduated from high school, and earned a record as a model prisoner.
At his resentencing hearing, the judge did consider Jones' youth at the time of the crime, but again sentenced him to life without parole. The judge did not make any finding that Jones was so incorrigible that he had no hope of rehabilitation.
Jones' lawyer appealed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, contending that consideration of a defendant's youth is not enough and that Jones, now in his 30s, should have at least a chance at parole because he has shown he is capable of rehabilitation.
Twenty-five states ban life without parole for juveniles entirely. And six more states do not have anyone serving that sentence for a crime committed when a juvenile. But 19 states do allow life without parole for juvenile murderers.
In a withering dissent Thursday, Justice Sonia Sotomayor used language from Justice Kavanaugh's past opinions to write that the court's decision was "an abrupt break from precedent." She accused he majority of using "contortions" and "distortions" to "circumvent" legal precedent. The majority, she said, "is fooling no one."
The court's previous rulings, she wrote, require that most children be spared from punishments that give "no chance for fulfillment outside prison walls" and "no hope." She quoted Jones as saying at his resentencing hearing, "I've pretty much taken every avenue that I could possibly take ... to rehabilitate myself ... I can't change what I've done. I can just try to show ... I've become a grown man."
Thursday's ruling will certainly make it more difficult for juvenile offenders like Jones to show judges they deserve another chance at freedom somewhere down the road, says Cardozo Law School's Kathryn Miller. "It's going to be much harder to convince judges" that evidence of rehabilitation is relevant, she says.
"A lot of times these judges really want to still focus on the facts of the crime" even though it is years or decades later, she said. "They're not interested in the rehabilitation narrative."
Neither, it seems, is the newly constituted conservative Supreme Court majority.
https://www.npr.org/2021/04/22/989822872/supreme-court-rejects-restrictions-on-life-without-parole-for-juveniles
Stabbed his grandfather with a knife that broke, so he used a steak knife to kill him, stabbing at least 8 times.
The neck tat is a nice touch. If he's truly rehabilitated, he's making prison safer for other inmates.
https://www.wtva.com/content/news/Mississippi-Supreme-Court-dismisses-appeal-in-Lee-County-murder-case-501584021.html
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Florida teen sentenced to life in prison for fatally stabbing 13-year-old classmate
By Melissa Alonso and Zoe Sottile, CNN
Updated: March 24, 2023
A judge sentenced Aiden Fucci – the Florida teenager convicted of first-degree murder for stabbing a 13-year-old over 100 times in 2021 – to life in prison on Friday.
Fucci, 16, entered his guilty plea in February 2023 at a hearing intended to get jury selection for his trial underway, according to CNN’s previous reporting. Fucci was 14 years old when he brutally killed classmate Tristyn Bailey in the woods in St. Johns County in northeastern Florida. He was charged as an adult.
During Friday’s sentencing, Circuit Judge R. Lee Smith said he took into account several factors when making his decision, including Fucci’s young age, the “heightened level” of premeditation, and that he was the “sole participant” who was not pressured by anyone to commit the “devastating crime.” He noted that Fucci was considered of “average maturity” by his peers and that he understood the consequences of his actions.
Aiden Fucci, 16, pleaded guilty to first degree murder, authorities said.
Bailey “suffered a painful and horrifying death from someone she trusted,” said Smith before announcing the sentence Friday.
He described the victim as an “energetic, happy child.”
“The loss which you have clearly suffered is unimaginable,” the judge said to Bailey’s family and friends. “Sometimes family members hope or expect that whatever the sentence is, that somehow or another that’s going to heal or provide closure.”
“I cannot provide a closure to this,” he went on. “It may close a chapter, but … I cannot bring her back.”
“You still have a lot of healing to do,” the judge said to tearful loved ones. “Her spirit lives on through each and every one of you.”
Fucci will have 30 days to appeal the sentence if he intends to do so, the judge said.
Bailey’s body was found on May 9, 2021, after her family had reported her missing earlier that day. She had been stabbed 114 times and sustained 49 defensive wounds to her head, hands, and arms, according to the state attorney.
The prosecutor said that Fucci had told witnesses that he intended to stab someone to death in the woods. Additionally, Fucci’s DNA was found on Bailey’s body, according to CNN’s previous reporting.
Following the sentencing, the victim’s father, Forrest Bailey, shared a touching message for his murdered daughter.
“Tristyn, I wanted to let you know we are so extremely proud of the person that you were in your time here,” he said.
“When you went out into the world, you gave it your very best. You should be proud of the friend that you were, the teammate you were, and what you left behind,” the father of five said. “We love you. We will continue to hold you in our hearts – and we will always be the ‘Bailey seven.’”
Forrest Bailey thanked the prosecutor, sheriff, and judge for the life sentence. He also asked people to be kind to members of Fucci’s family.
At Friday’s sentencing, the judge noted that while Fucci showed some potential for rehabilitation, the crime was “extraordinary.”
“His behavior was so unusual compared to individuals his age that there is a poor prognosis for rehabilitation,” he said.
He called the case the “most difficult and shocking case” that St. Johns County had encountered. Smith added that the crime was especially troubling because it had “no motive.”
“This was not done out of greed, it was not done in retaliation, retribution, or revenge, it was not a crime of passion, it was not a crime that was committed because he felt rejected by her. It was not done in a fit of uncontrollable anger. There was no reason. There was no purpose,” he went on. “It was done for no other reason than to satisfy this defendant’s internal desire to feel what it was like to kill someone.”
https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/24/us/aiden-fucci-sentencing-tristyn-bailey-stabbing/index.html
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When someone that young commits a senseless murder, there really is no hope for rehabilitation. Look at Lionel Tate. He should have never been released.
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I have no idea what to do with a kid this young who commits a crime like this. Lock the parents up?
Virginia 6-year-old's chilling words after shooting 1st grade teacher during class revealed in unsealed docs
The boy allegedly bragged about possibly killing Richneck Elementary School teacher Abigail Zwerner, newly unsealed warrants allege
By Danielle Wallace | Fox News
Published August 9, 2023
. . .
"I shot that b---- dead," the boy said on Jan. 6, 2023, just moments after the shooting, according to Amy Kovac, a reading specialist at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News, Virginia. Kovac rushed into the classroom afterward and restrained the child until police arrived.
. . .
https://www.foxnews.com/us/virginia-6-year-olds-chilling-words-shooting-first-grade-teacher-class-revealed-unsealed-docs