The Boy Is Too Young

When I was young and living with my parents, I tried to run away once. I sat in the back seat of the family car until they found me. The boys in this true crime, were much more serious about their plan. Perhaps the boy found his home life unbearable, as he targeted his stepfather—I found no testimony about his home life.

The 15-year-old stepson and his 12-year-old friend planned for weeks to murder the older boy’s stepfather, then flee to another state where his biological father lived.

A third boy, also twelve, had knowledge of the plan and assisted the 12-year-old friend climb into the home through the 15-year-old’s bedroom window. The third boy waited outside.

Once inside the bedroom, the stepson gave the 12-year-old a loaded firearm. The two boys waited in the living room for the stepfather to enter—when he did, they both shot him. The mother was not home at the time of the murder.

The three boys fled in a family vehicle, but law enforcement caught them before they’d cross the state line.

Here’s how young and immature the boys were, a spokesperson for the sheriff’s office said about the boys while they were in jail awaiting legal proceedings ...

“The boys were doing a lot of schoolwork, playing cards, and got games from the library to pass the time.”

After the authorities arrested and charged them with murder, both shooters pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder. The third boy admitted to his involvement and for assisting a criminal. The court sentenced the third boy to a juvenile detention facility until he turned 18.

A judge sentenced the 15-year-old stepson to 30 years in prison, with five suspended. Then, with good behavior and completing educational and rehabilitative programs, he cut his time served in half.

A judge sentenced the 12-year-old shooter to 30 years in prison. The Court of Appeals reversed the sentence. In the appeal, the doctor who performed a psychological exam on him said, “The boy is too young for his future to be foreclosed on if adjudicated in the adult criminal system and subsequently placed in the adult penal system.” He again pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder. Because of changes in the sentencing laws for juvenile offenders, his new sentence kept him mostly in a juvenile facility. When he transferred to an adult prison, the judge ordered a minimum-security facility for approximately one more year before being released at age 19.

Source: State Appeals Court, CBS News

All data and information provided is for information and research purposes only and not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company, or individual. Criminal cases may have been appealed or verdicts overturned since I researched the case. All information is provided on an as-is basis.