The scene was described by local law enforcement as “gruesome.” Four children, ages 17, 16, 9, and 3 years old, were left at home alone. The 16-year-old boy had allergy stabbed his two younger siblings, fatally killing the youngest one.
These are just a few of the descriptions used in the recent news of the arrest of a 16-year-old Arizona boy who is facing second-degree murder, aggravated assault and endangerment charges for the death of his 3-year-old brother and injury of his 9-year-old sister.
Deputies were called to the scene after receiving 911 calls from neighbors who witnessed the oldest of 4 siblings carrying 2 of his younger siblings in his arms to safety after being attacked by their brother. One sibling, a 9-year-old girl, suffered non-life threatening injuries to her upper torso, while the other 2 were unharmed. The 3-year-old was already gone. Not many details of the incident have been released and there’s no indication of what may have triggered the attack. The suspect didn’t have a history of mental illness, so it will be interesting to see what comes out during the investigation as to a possible motive.
With the suspect being such a young age, yet, at the same time, so close to the age of 18, it brings forth the issue of whether to charge him as a juvenile or an adult. Local authorities expressed confidence the 16-year old would be charged as an adult, but the State has yet to make an official decision.
How Does a Juvenile Even Get Charged as an Adult?
Society sees juveniles as children who are not fully developed and that’s why juvenile courts were created. Anyone under the age of 18 gets different treatment for their crimes. Why does this matter? Well, because juvenile adjudication is far less consequential than adult court. The theory is that we shouldn’t punish those that can’t fully understand the meaning of their actions. But, what about those instances when the crime is so harrowing that it seems too lenient for a child not to be charged as an adult? At what point do children need to take full responsibility for their crimes?
A total of 45 states allow a juvenile’s charges to be transferred from juvenile to adult court. How that happens varies by state, but there are multiple transfer mechanisms. Whether that be from an automatic transfer (for certain crimes) from juvenile to adult court, direct and presumptive waiver laws where a hearing must be held, prosecutorial discretion, or statutory exclusion laws, each state has at least one form or the other.
Arizona does have statutes in place that allow a prosecuting attorney to file charges directly in adult court for higher-offense felonies. A child between the ages of 14-17 can be charged as an adult for first- and second-degree murder. Any other violent felony would also count.
Once a State decides to charge a juvenile as an adult, at least in Arizona, the juvenile has the opportunity to file a motion with the court to try to transfer their case back in juvenile jurisdiction, but the burden’s on them to prove there’s enough evidence that public safety isn’t at threat and that rehabilitation is better served by a transfer. There are a number of factors Arizona courts will consider in this instance, the seriousness of the offense being one of them, but because of the way this crime is being described, this seems pretty doubtful in this case.
What Does This Mean for the Suspect?
If charged and convicted as an adult, the 16-year-old will face the same penalties any adult would, rather than possible juvenile sentences. Anyone under the age of 18 cannot receive the death penalty and, instead, the court will decide between a life sentence or a natural life sentence. Life sentences are eligible for parole after 25 years, whereas natural life sentences mean a defendant would be sentenced to prison until the day they die with no possibility of parole.
At this point, the 16-year-old suspect is facing second-degree murder charges (which must mean local authorities don’t believe there was any premeditation), so this isn’t an issue unless they find out during the case there was premeditation. That conviction would hold a minimum of a 10-year sentence, a presumptive 16-year sentence, and a maximum of 22 years.
Authored by Ashley Roncevic, LegalMatch Legal Writer and Attorney at Law
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