Class will meet on Monday, Nov. 9th at the Adams County Juvenile Detention Facility. Please arrive by 12:30 pm, as they are expecting to begin our tour at that time.
Directions:
Travel East on Broadway past the turn off to County Market (just past 48th St.).
Continue to the next traffic signal and turn right. Bed, Bath & Beyond and Game Masters are at that intersection.
Travel South approximately 1 block; the Detention Facility will be on your left (East). The entrance to their parking lot is on the left and back a short way from the street. You may have to be buzzed in at the main entrance.
See you all there next Monday!
Monday, November 2, 2009
Sunday, November 1, 2009
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT
Class will NOT meet on Nov. 2 as previously announced. We will also not meet on Wed. Nov. 4.
Next class meeting will be Monday, November 9, 2009.
Next class meeting will be Monday, November 9, 2009.
Four Charged in Alleged Gang Rape
Four teens could appear in court as early as Thursday (10/29/09) after being charged in the alleged gang rape of a 15-year-old girl outside her high school homecoming dance in Northern California.
The four--ages 15, 16, 17 and 19--were charged Wednesday with rape and enhancements that they acted in concert, which could make them eligible for life in prison.
"These are people who played a significant role in the incident," Richmond Police Lt. Mark Gagan said. "I'm confident that more arrests will be made."
Besides rape, the 19-year-old, Manuel Ortega of Richmond, was charged with robbery and assault causing great bodily injury. It was unknown if he had an attorney.
The other three face one count each of felony rape with a foreign object. They were charged as adults because of the severity of the crime, Gagan said. The 16-year-old also faces robbery charges.
All four remained in custody Wednesday. A fifth suspect arrested Tuesday, 21-year-old Salvador Rodriguez of Richmond, also remained jailed but had not been charged.
The alleged gang rape and beating Saturday (10/24/09) night at Richmond High School rattled the city of about 120,000 in the San Francisco Bay area.
Police believe as many as 10 people ranging in age from 15 to mid-20s attacked the girl for more than two hours in a dimly lit area. As many as two dozen people witnessed the rape without notifying police.
Dana Cashman, head of the Contra Costa District Attorney's Office sex crimes unit, told the Contra Costa Times, a Bay area newspaper, that those who witnessed the alleged rape and did not report it could face aiding and abetting charges--if it can be proven that their actions facilitated or goaded the perpetrators.
Police hope a $20,000 reward will bring more people forward with information.
Police received a tip about a possible assault on campus from a former student, who heard two males bragging about it. Officers found the girl semiconscious and naked from the waist down near a picnic table.
Margarita Vargas, who was watching television Saturday night with others at her home two blocks from the school campus, told the newspaper that she reported the assault as soon as she heard about it. The newspaper did not say whether Vargas was a student at the school.
"They think it's cool," Vargas said of the alleged perpetrators. "They weren't raised to respect girls."
Gagan said the victim, a sophomore, left the dance and was walking to meet her father for a ride home when a classmate invited her to join a group drinking in the courtyard. The girl had consumed a large amount of alcohol by the time the assault began, police said.
Gagan said the girl's father tried to call her cell phone, but no one answered.
She was released from the hospital Wednesday (10/29/09).
This article, written by Terry Collins, AP, is copywrite 2009 by The Associated Press.
Share your thoughts................
The four--ages 15, 16, 17 and 19--were charged Wednesday with rape and enhancements that they acted in concert, which could make them eligible for life in prison.
"These are people who played a significant role in the incident," Richmond Police Lt. Mark Gagan said. "I'm confident that more arrests will be made."
Besides rape, the 19-year-old, Manuel Ortega of Richmond, was charged with robbery and assault causing great bodily injury. It was unknown if he had an attorney.
The other three face one count each of felony rape with a foreign object. They were charged as adults because of the severity of the crime, Gagan said. The 16-year-old also faces robbery charges.
All four remained in custody Wednesday. A fifth suspect arrested Tuesday, 21-year-old Salvador Rodriguez of Richmond, also remained jailed but had not been charged.
The alleged gang rape and beating Saturday (10/24/09) night at Richmond High School rattled the city of about 120,000 in the San Francisco Bay area.
Police believe as many as 10 people ranging in age from 15 to mid-20s attacked the girl for more than two hours in a dimly lit area. As many as two dozen people witnessed the rape without notifying police.
Dana Cashman, head of the Contra Costa District Attorney's Office sex crimes unit, told the Contra Costa Times, a Bay area newspaper, that those who witnessed the alleged rape and did not report it could face aiding and abetting charges--if it can be proven that their actions facilitated or goaded the perpetrators.
Police hope a $20,000 reward will bring more people forward with information.
Police received a tip about a possible assault on campus from a former student, who heard two males bragging about it. Officers found the girl semiconscious and naked from the waist down near a picnic table.
Margarita Vargas, who was watching television Saturday night with others at her home two blocks from the school campus, told the newspaper that she reported the assault as soon as she heard about it. The newspaper did not say whether Vargas was a student at the school.
"They think it's cool," Vargas said of the alleged perpetrators. "They weren't raised to respect girls."
Gagan said the victim, a sophomore, left the dance and was walking to meet her father for a ride home when a classmate invited her to join a group drinking in the courtyard. The girl had consumed a large amount of alcohol by the time the assault began, police said.
Gagan said the girl's father tried to call her cell phone, but no one answered.
She was released from the hospital Wednesday (10/29/09).
This article, written by Terry Collins, AP, is copywrite 2009 by The Associated Press.
Share your thoughts................
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
There is a change in our class schedule. We will be meeting on Monday November 2, and Monday November 9. We will NOT meet on Wednesday the 4th or 11th.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Truancy
Disconnection from school is one of the risk factors for becoming involved in delinquency. Many school districts have developed programs to prevent, or correct, truancy. Madison County Illinois has a Truancy Diversion Program in which at-risk students in grades 6-8 are involved in a 12-week after school program. Local teachers and SIU-E students staff the program which provides tutoring, career information, and community service. In addition, a juvenile probation officer is involved in the weekly meetings, and a judge meets with students and parents.
A recent article in the Quincy Herald-Whig described the program, but did not indicate how at-risk students are identified. Prevention suggests involvement before a student is truant. The article also failed to offer information regarding the effectiveness of the program. It was reported, however, that 50 petitions were filed with the Court for students who had truancy problems. More than half the students came into compliance without further legal action, but four juveniles were placed in detention for 24 to 48 hours due to failure to return to school.
Adams County has developed a similar program in which truant juveniles are required to perform community service, participate in group counseling/education, and individual/family therapy will be available. Supervision of community service and group facilitation will be conducted by case workers in the community.
What do you think would be an effective response to truancy?
Should parents be held responsible for an adolescent's chronic refusal to attend school? (Fourteen parents were prosecuted on misdemeanor charges in Madison Co. truancy cases last year.)
What changes might be needed within school systems that would provide more incentive for students to attend?
What are your thoughts on truancy issues?
A recent article in the Quincy Herald-Whig described the program, but did not indicate how at-risk students are identified. Prevention suggests involvement before a student is truant. The article also failed to offer information regarding the effectiveness of the program. It was reported, however, that 50 petitions were filed with the Court for students who had truancy problems. More than half the students came into compliance without further legal action, but four juveniles were placed in detention for 24 to 48 hours due to failure to return to school.
Adams County has developed a similar program in which truant juveniles are required to perform community service, participate in group counseling/education, and individual/family therapy will be available. Supervision of community service and group facilitation will be conducted by case workers in the community.
What do you think would be an effective response to truancy?
Should parents be held responsible for an adolescent's chronic refusal to attend school? (Fourteen parents were prosecuted on misdemeanor charges in Madison Co. truancy cases last year.)
What changes might be needed within school systems that would provide more incentive for students to attend?
What are your thoughts on truancy issues?
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Recent Incident In Quincy
Since our class discussion of this youth, his charges, and unofficial versions of the incident, I have been watching the local paper for further information. This is a follow up to those discussions. I find it interesting that "nearly killing" is in quotes, as there is nothing that alludes to the victim "nearly dying." The article doesn't state that the victim nearly died. See my further thoughts at the end of the article.
Teen gets five years in prison for 'nearly killing' a 15-year-old boy with a golf club
By RODNEY HART
Herald-Whig Staff Writer
A Quincy teen was sentenced Thursday to five years in prison for "nearly killing" a 15-year-old boy with a golf club during a fight in Riverview Park on June 23, 2008.
Jonathan E. Bentzinger, 18, pleaded guilty Aug. 19 to aggravated battery and mob action. Judge William Mays sentenced him to five years for the aggravated battery and three years for the mob action, with the sentences to be served at the same time.
Bentzinger admitted to hitting the 15-year-old with a golf club. The 15-year-old's mother testified that her son suffered serious skull and brain injuries, and medical bills have exceeded $100,000. Mays ordered Bentzinger to pay $101,250.33 in restitution, and to pay further restitution for anticipated medical care.
The victim had to have brain and skull surgery and can never play football again, a sport his mother said he loved. She said his personality has changed from a patient person to a boy who is "jumpy" and gets upset more easily.
First Assistant State's Attorney Gary Farha said Bentzinger showed no remorse for his actions and a message needed to be sent for him "nearly killing" the victim.
"In a civilized society, there is no justification for what he did," Farha said.
Bentzinger apologized and said the victim "did not deserve what happened to him." He also said he was glad the victim appeared to be doing better. "If I could trade my future with him, I would," Bentzinger said. "I feel terrible about the pain I've caused him and his mother."
Authorities say the incident started around midnight when Steven McMillen, 17, was involved in a fight with two other individuals at the park. McMillen has been charged with aggravated battery in connection with the incident, and his case is on the December jury docket.
The two individuals then went to get Bentzinger and R.J. Rudd, 18, who has been charged with mob action and faces a trial next week in Quincy.
Bentzinger picked up a golf club because he saw McMillen swinging a baseball bat. But Farha said the 15-year-old boy just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
"He was a completely innocent bystander," Farha said of the victim. "In the flash of a couple of seconds, his life changed forever."
In exchange for Bentzinger's guilty pleas, charges of armed violence and two other aggravated battery counts were dropped.
The victim's mother said that her son's personality changed, from patient to "jumpy" and getting upset more easily. An earlier article indicated that the damage was to the back of the head. The lobes of the brain that reside in the back of the skull are the occipital (sits low at the base) and parietal (sitting just above the occipital). Adjacent to each side of the parietal lobe are the temporal lobes (located more at the side of the head). The main functions of occipital and parietal lobes are visual perception (occipital) and integrating sensory input, especially visual (parietal). Problems one might see after injury to the back of the head are:
visual hallucinations
inability to integrate sensory information to form a single perception or thought
abnormalities in body image and spatial relations.
If the injury was not directly to the back of the head, but slightly to the side with both parietal and temporal lobes being affected, lesions could cause some personality changes as non-verbal memory is primarily located in the right parietal-temporal lobe area. Lesions to the left parietal-temporal lobe area can affect verbal memory and ability to recall strings of digits (phone number perhaps?).
On reading the mother's statement that her son is more jumpy and gets upset more easily, my thought was the he is experiencing posttraumatic stress disorder. It is not uncommon at all after such an experience to involuntarily relive parts of the event, to be hypersensitive, and have an exaggerated startle response. With time and treatment, these symptoms typically decrease.
It makes sense that he would no longer be able to play football. Visual perception is crucial to many activities we take for granted: driving, catching a ball, moving through a crowded corridor.
The human brain can be resilient and adaptive, especially with occupational therapy. Other parts of the brain can "learn" to perform new functions. There have been victims of severe head injury who have ultimately regained previous level of functioning. This is not to discount the impact of damage this young man experienced; I simply believe where he's at four months following the injury may possibly be much different in the future.
What are your thoughts about the sentence?
How did the statement "If I could trade my future with him, I would," strike you?
What other thoughts do you have about this case?
Teen gets five years in prison for 'nearly killing' a 15-year-old boy with a golf club
By RODNEY HART
Herald-Whig Staff Writer
A Quincy teen was sentenced Thursday to five years in prison for "nearly killing" a 15-year-old boy with a golf club during a fight in Riverview Park on June 23, 2008.
Jonathan E. Bentzinger, 18, pleaded guilty Aug. 19 to aggravated battery and mob action. Judge William Mays sentenced him to five years for the aggravated battery and three years for the mob action, with the sentences to be served at the same time.
Bentzinger admitted to hitting the 15-year-old with a golf club. The 15-year-old's mother testified that her son suffered serious skull and brain injuries, and medical bills have exceeded $100,000. Mays ordered Bentzinger to pay $101,250.33 in restitution, and to pay further restitution for anticipated medical care.
The victim had to have brain and skull surgery and can never play football again, a sport his mother said he loved. She said his personality has changed from a patient person to a boy who is "jumpy" and gets upset more easily.
First Assistant State's Attorney Gary Farha said Bentzinger showed no remorse for his actions and a message needed to be sent for him "nearly killing" the victim.
"In a civilized society, there is no justification for what he did," Farha said.
Bentzinger apologized and said the victim "did not deserve what happened to him." He also said he was glad the victim appeared to be doing better. "If I could trade my future with him, I would," Bentzinger said. "I feel terrible about the pain I've caused him and his mother."
Authorities say the incident started around midnight when Steven McMillen, 17, was involved in a fight with two other individuals at the park. McMillen has been charged with aggravated battery in connection with the incident, and his case is on the December jury docket.
The two individuals then went to get Bentzinger and R.J. Rudd, 18, who has been charged with mob action and faces a trial next week in Quincy.
Bentzinger picked up a golf club because he saw McMillen swinging a baseball bat. But Farha said the 15-year-old boy just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
"He was a completely innocent bystander," Farha said of the victim. "In the flash of a couple of seconds, his life changed forever."
In exchange for Bentzinger's guilty pleas, charges of armed violence and two other aggravated battery counts were dropped.
The victim's mother said that her son's personality changed, from patient to "jumpy" and getting upset more easily. An earlier article indicated that the damage was to the back of the head. The lobes of the brain that reside in the back of the skull are the occipital (sits low at the base) and parietal (sitting just above the occipital). Adjacent to each side of the parietal lobe are the temporal lobes (located more at the side of the head). The main functions of occipital and parietal lobes are visual perception (occipital) and integrating sensory input, especially visual (parietal). Problems one might see after injury to the back of the head are:
visual hallucinations
inability to integrate sensory information to form a single perception or thought
abnormalities in body image and spatial relations.
If the injury was not directly to the back of the head, but slightly to the side with both parietal and temporal lobes being affected, lesions could cause some personality changes as non-verbal memory is primarily located in the right parietal-temporal lobe area. Lesions to the left parietal-temporal lobe area can affect verbal memory and ability to recall strings of digits (phone number perhaps?).
On reading the mother's statement that her son is more jumpy and gets upset more easily, my thought was the he is experiencing posttraumatic stress disorder. It is not uncommon at all after such an experience to involuntarily relive parts of the event, to be hypersensitive, and have an exaggerated startle response. With time and treatment, these symptoms typically decrease.
It makes sense that he would no longer be able to play football. Visual perception is crucial to many activities we take for granted: driving, catching a ball, moving through a crowded corridor.
The human brain can be resilient and adaptive, especially with occupational therapy. Other parts of the brain can "learn" to perform new functions. There have been victims of severe head injury who have ultimately regained previous level of functioning. This is not to discount the impact of damage this young man experienced; I simply believe where he's at four months following the injury may possibly be much different in the future.
What are your thoughts about the sentence?
How did the statement "If I could trade my future with him, I would," strike you?
What other thoughts do you have about this case?
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Outcome of 8-year old's murder confession
Posted on tothewire.wordpress.com 11/11/08:
ST. JOHNS, Ariz. — The divorced mother of an 8-year-old boy accused of shooting his father and another man to death last week said she was as puzzled as everyone else about what led to the killings, but added that her son was not capable of the crime.
“I don’t believe he did this,” said Erin Bloomfield, 26, who has shared joint custody with her son’s father, Vincent Romero, 29, after their divorce six years ago.
She said that the boy, who lived here with his father and stepmother, had grown more withdrawn in recent months, and that she worried that he might have been abused in some way. Ms. Bloomfield, who looked wan and worried, confirmed reports that Mr. Romero had spanked their son the day before the shootings. She also said that her son was close to his father. The two played ball, and went hiking and hunting together regularly.
Other residents of this small, predominately Mormon and Catholic town echoed Ms. Bloomfield’s sentiments, voicing confusion about how an 8-year-old Bible student could be accused of killing his church-going, doting father and Timothy Romans, 39, a boarder and co-worker of Mr. Romero.
The killings are unprecedented and, residents said, unthinkable in St. Johns, with a population of about 4,000. Until the shootings, crime here consisted of the occasional methamphetamine lab bust, police officials said. A larger problem is unemployment, which has risen recently with job cutbacks at two nearby coal-burning plants.
A windy hamlet of horse ranches, low-slung houses, and double-wide trailers, the biggest structures in St. Johns are a few churches and schools along the single main road, which has no stoplights.
But last week’s killings have swept the town into a swirl of trepidation and speculation. Pretty much everyone knows Romero family, or knows someone who knows the family. Hundreds of people turned up for Mr. Romero’s funeral on Monday at St. Johns Catholic Church, the same church where Mr. Romero married his wife, Tiffany, in September. They and the boy spent their honeymoon at Disneyland, Ms. Bloomfield said.
She expressed disgust over rumors sweeping the town, and said her son was being vilified by residents who assumed he was guilty. “This town is too small,” she said. “Everybody thinks they know what happened. They’re saying all kinds of things about my son.”
She described said her son as a normal boy who plays videogames nonstop, dotes on his new dog, a boxer, and enjoys playing softball and basketball with his father. Ms. Bloomfield also confirmed that Mr. Romero had recently bought their son a .22 rifle for hunting, a common pastime of young boys and their fathers in this rugged town.
She said she also feared reports that prosecutors may seek to try her son as an adult. He has been charged as such with two counts of premeditated murder.
Ms. Bloomfield accused the police of coercing a confession from her son before he was represented by a lawyer or had a guardian present. Police officials said this occurred because they were questioning her son as a possible witness to the killings when, about 45 minutes after the interview begun, he unexpectedly admitted he was the gunman.
She said she was especially appalled to see that the police led her young son into court on Monday in shackles, his hands bound to a security belt that had to be looped around his waist three times because of his small stature.
The judge ordered the restraints removed.
“I blew some kisses at him and told him to put some in his pocket for later,” she said. “Later he told me he needed more kisses to put in his pocket.”
Sister Angelina Chavez, a soft-spoken woman in a dark habit, led the boy’s religious instruction at St. Johns Catholic Church and has known the family since he was a baby. “The father and his wife sang in the choir,” she said as she put away chairs that were used during the funeral. Her view of the boy, she said, was of “a person who took his religious faith very seriously.”
“I just don’t know what happened to him spiritually, emotionally,” Sister Angelina said.
The child walked across the street from Coronado Elementary School every Monday for the religious lessons, she said. “This is going to take a while to get over,” said Ms. Chavez. “Parishioners have come to me asking why it happened. I just don’t know.”
Lucas Graf, 12, and Jude Chavez, 11, said they used to play with the boy and were baffled as to how a youngster whom they wrestled and swam with in the scorching summer just past could have committed such a brutal act on a recent autumn day.
“He’s a nice kid,” Lucas said. “He’s normal.”
From Mahalo.com:
An 8-year-old boy killed his father, Vincent Romero and his friend, Timothy Romans, in St. Johns, Arizona, on November 5, 2008, local police reported. Authorities said the murders were "premeditated" and they made an effort to determine whether abuse could have led to the shootings. Arizona law allows suspects 8 years of age or older to be tried as adults.Seattle Times: 2 men fatally shot; boy, 8, is charged (November 8, 2008).
On February 19, 2009, the boy pleaded guilty to negligent homicide in the death of Timothy Romans; charges in the death of his father were dropped. He will stay in the custody of the state until he turns 18; a superior court will decide whether he spends the time in juvenile detention, with a foster family, or with his mother Erin Bloomfield.
Share your thoughts!
ST. JOHNS, Ariz. — The divorced mother of an 8-year-old boy accused of shooting his father and another man to death last week said she was as puzzled as everyone else about what led to the killings, but added that her son was not capable of the crime.
“I don’t believe he did this,” said Erin Bloomfield, 26, who has shared joint custody with her son’s father, Vincent Romero, 29, after their divorce six years ago.
She said that the boy, who lived here with his father and stepmother, had grown more withdrawn in recent months, and that she worried that he might have been abused in some way. Ms. Bloomfield, who looked wan and worried, confirmed reports that Mr. Romero had spanked their son the day before the shootings. She also said that her son was close to his father. The two played ball, and went hiking and hunting together regularly.
Other residents of this small, predominately Mormon and Catholic town echoed Ms. Bloomfield’s sentiments, voicing confusion about how an 8-year-old Bible student could be accused of killing his church-going, doting father and Timothy Romans, 39, a boarder and co-worker of Mr. Romero.
The killings are unprecedented and, residents said, unthinkable in St. Johns, with a population of about 4,000. Until the shootings, crime here consisted of the occasional methamphetamine lab bust, police officials said. A larger problem is unemployment, which has risen recently with job cutbacks at two nearby coal-burning plants.
A windy hamlet of horse ranches, low-slung houses, and double-wide trailers, the biggest structures in St. Johns are a few churches and schools along the single main road, which has no stoplights.
But last week’s killings have swept the town into a swirl of trepidation and speculation. Pretty much everyone knows Romero family, or knows someone who knows the family. Hundreds of people turned up for Mr. Romero’s funeral on Monday at St. Johns Catholic Church, the same church where Mr. Romero married his wife, Tiffany, in September. They and the boy spent their honeymoon at Disneyland, Ms. Bloomfield said.
She expressed disgust over rumors sweeping the town, and said her son was being vilified by residents who assumed he was guilty. “This town is too small,” she said. “Everybody thinks they know what happened. They’re saying all kinds of things about my son.”
She described said her son as a normal boy who plays videogames nonstop, dotes on his new dog, a boxer, and enjoys playing softball and basketball with his father. Ms. Bloomfield also confirmed that Mr. Romero had recently bought their son a .22 rifle for hunting, a common pastime of young boys and their fathers in this rugged town.
She said she also feared reports that prosecutors may seek to try her son as an adult. He has been charged as such with two counts of premeditated murder.
Ms. Bloomfield accused the police of coercing a confession from her son before he was represented by a lawyer or had a guardian present. Police officials said this occurred because they were questioning her son as a possible witness to the killings when, about 45 minutes after the interview begun, he unexpectedly admitted he was the gunman.
She said she was especially appalled to see that the police led her young son into court on Monday in shackles, his hands bound to a security belt that had to be looped around his waist three times because of his small stature.
The judge ordered the restraints removed.
“I blew some kisses at him and told him to put some in his pocket for later,” she said. “Later he told me he needed more kisses to put in his pocket.”
Sister Angelina Chavez, a soft-spoken woman in a dark habit, led the boy’s religious instruction at St. Johns Catholic Church and has known the family since he was a baby. “The father and his wife sang in the choir,” she said as she put away chairs that were used during the funeral. Her view of the boy, she said, was of “a person who took his religious faith very seriously.”
“I just don’t know what happened to him spiritually, emotionally,” Sister Angelina said.
The child walked across the street from Coronado Elementary School every Monday for the religious lessons, she said. “This is going to take a while to get over,” said Ms. Chavez. “Parishioners have come to me asking why it happened. I just don’t know.”
Lucas Graf, 12, and Jude Chavez, 11, said they used to play with the boy and were baffled as to how a youngster whom they wrestled and swam with in the scorching summer just past could have committed such a brutal act on a recent autumn day.
“He’s a nice kid,” Lucas said. “He’s normal.”
From Mahalo.com:
An 8-year-old boy killed his father, Vincent Romero and his friend, Timothy Romans, in St. Johns, Arizona, on November 5, 2008, local police reported. Authorities said the murders were "premeditated" and they made an effort to determine whether abuse could have led to the shootings. Arizona law allows suspects 8 years of age or older to be tried as adults.Seattle Times: 2 men fatally shot; boy, 8, is charged (November 8, 2008).
On February 19, 2009, the boy pleaded guilty to negligent homicide in the death of Timothy Romans; charges in the death of his father were dropped. He will stay in the custody of the state until he turns 18; a superior court will decide whether he spends the time in juvenile detention, with a foster family, or with his mother Erin Bloomfield.
Share your thoughts!
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Arizona Boy Charged With Murder Of Father
8-Year-Old Gave Conflicting Stories, But Ultimately Confessed In Video, Police Say
(CBS/AP) An 8-year-old boy accused in the shooting deaths of his father and another man said in a police interview released Tuesday that he did not fire the first shots at the men but later shot them so they wouldn't suffer. The boy gives conflicting accounts of the shootings during an hourlong video of his interview with authorities in St. Johns, but the video ends with him admitting to pulling the trigger. He then buries his head in his jacket. "I'm going to go to juvie," the boy says after an officer asks what he's thinking. The roughly 12-minute video posted Monday night on Phoenix television station KTVK's Web site shows part of the questioning the boy underwent as authorities in the eastern Arizona community of St. Johns investigated the Nov. 5 killings.
The station said it got the video from the prosecutor's office in Apache County, where the shootings occurred. "There was blood all over his face, I think," the boy said in the video, referring to his father. "And I think I touched him." The boy has been charged in juvenile court with two counts of murder in the deaths of his father, Vincent Romero, and Timothy Romans, who rented a room there and was Romero's co-worker.
A defense attorney has said police overreached in their questioning of the boy, who was not represented by a family member or lawyer during the interview. "I think they're going to have a problem getting that statement into court," defense attorney Benjamin Brewer said earlier this month before a judge issued a gag order in the case. "I believe there were many violations in regards to how it was obtained." The gag order does not extend to the release of reports or recordings that would be considered public records in Arizona. The shootings occurred Nov. 5 in an eastern Arizona community about 170 miles northeast of Phoenix. The boy is due in court Wednesday for a hearing. He is being held in a juvenile jail.
© MMVIII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
These murders occurred 11 months ago. What issues are raised in your minds regarding the questioning of this boy?
How reliable would an eight-year old be during the interview with police, given what he had just experienced?
What follow-up can you find regarding subsequent interviews with police, legal representation, others who might have been implicated/suspected in association with the murders?
(CBS/AP) An 8-year-old boy accused in the shooting deaths of his father and another man said in a police interview released Tuesday that he did not fire the first shots at the men but later shot them so they wouldn't suffer. The boy gives conflicting accounts of the shootings during an hourlong video of his interview with authorities in St. Johns, but the video ends with him admitting to pulling the trigger. He then buries his head in his jacket. "I'm going to go to juvie," the boy says after an officer asks what he's thinking. The roughly 12-minute video posted Monday night on Phoenix television station KTVK's Web site shows part of the questioning the boy underwent as authorities in the eastern Arizona community of St. Johns investigated the Nov. 5 killings.
The station said it got the video from the prosecutor's office in Apache County, where the shootings occurred. "There was blood all over his face, I think," the boy said in the video, referring to his father. "And I think I touched him." The boy has been charged in juvenile court with two counts of murder in the deaths of his father, Vincent Romero, and Timothy Romans, who rented a room there and was Romero's co-worker.
A defense attorney has said police overreached in their questioning of the boy, who was not represented by a family member or lawyer during the interview. "I think they're going to have a problem getting that statement into court," defense attorney Benjamin Brewer said earlier this month before a judge issued a gag order in the case. "I believe there were many violations in regards to how it was obtained." The gag order does not extend to the release of reports or recordings that would be considered public records in Arizona. The shootings occurred Nov. 5 in an eastern Arizona community about 170 miles northeast of Phoenix. The boy is due in court Wednesday for a hearing. He is being held in a juvenile jail.
© MMVIII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
These murders occurred 11 months ago. What issues are raised in your minds regarding the questioning of this boy?
How reliable would an eight-year old be during the interview with police, given what he had just experienced?
What follow-up can you find regarding subsequent interviews with police, legal representation, others who might have been implicated/suspected in association with the murders?
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
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