14-y/o Lawrence King Killer to be Tried as Adult

Although I found Lawrence King's murder to be a tragedy, I have expressed before that I do not wish to see Kings killer tried as an adult. Brandon McInerney, who shot King twice in the head, is a fourteen-year-old child. At this socially and emotionally confusing time, a child lacks the maturity and forethought that an adult would have. He has not been fully and properly socialized at this point.

McInerney should be punished harshly, I agree with that. However, by trying him as an adult we compound the tragedy of King's murder by holding a child to a standard of behavior he cannot fully understand. If McInerney were even a few years older, I would agree with the decision to try McInerney as an adult. Even a 16 year-old would probably have the emotionaly, social, and moral maturity I think is necessary to hold someone to the adult standard in a first-degree murder trial. But 14, in my opinion, is too young.

Source:
[Ventura County Star]