Wednesday, May 28, 2008

The wheels of justice

They say the wheels of justice move slowly.

Well, they move a little quicker in the juvenile court system.

Jahmir Ricks was 13 when he was arrested last summer and charged with first-degree murder in the stabbing death of his brother in what police described as an argument over a video game.

A long, tortured series of hearings commenced at which it was argued whether Ricks and the public would be best served by assigning his case to the adult courts, or the juvenile system.

Ricks was arrested last July 15. He sat in Delaware County Prison for the next 10 months, turning 14 in the process. Two weeks ago Delaware County Judge Frank Hazel ruled Ricks’ case should be transferred to the juvenile system.

Yesterday, Ricks entered an admission to a charge of voluntary manslaughter in the case. It amounts to a guilty plea in adult court.

Ricks will be back in court on June 5 for a disposition hearing, what amounts to his sentencing. He likely will remain in custody until he turns 21.

It took awhile, but in this case it appears as if justice was indeed served.

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