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| Judge denies juvenile status for 15-year-old murder suspect |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 11/21/2003 |
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Saying the case tests one's faith "in the inherent goodness of human nature," a judge Thursday ordered a 15-year-old girl who allegedly lured a teenager to his brutal death to be tried as an adult. Justina Morley and three male teens plotted to kill 16-year-old Jason Sweeney so they could steal $500 from him for a drug binge, prosecutors said. Morley, then a Catholic school eighth-grader, watched as the three boys beat him with a hatchet, hammer and rocks on May 30 - then bought bracelets on trendy South Street the next day with some of her share of the money, they said. Common Pleas Judge Benjamin Lerner noted that none of the defendants reconsidered in the week between planning the crime and Sweeney's death. Morley, who suffers from depression, substance abuse and poor supervision, had been cutting herself since age 10 and made at least two serious suicide attempts, a defense psychiatrist testified. She received limited psychiatric care, including less than 20 days of hospitalization, in the year before the crime, defense lawyer William J. Brennan said. Brennan argued that Morley - and society - would be better served if she were given intensive treatment in a secure juvenile facility until age 21. Morley's mother also testified, saying her once-bubbly child, the fifth of six children, had become withdrawn by age 11 or 12. A single mother, April Frederick said she worked full-time but insisted that rules be followed. She sought psychiatric help for Justina and another daughter last year after she was told that Justina had been cutting herself. Morley, a small girl with a ponytail and glasses, used the sleeve of her blue sweat shirt to stifle sobs throughout the hearing. She spoke only when she was sworn in, her voice barely audible. Lawyers for at least some of the co-defendants - Dominic Coia; his younger brother, Nicholas, 16; and Edward Batzig Jr., 16 - hope to reach plea agreements in the case, which stunned many in the Philadelphia and in Fishtown, the working-class neighborhood where Sweeney and his accused killers lived. Each defendant is charged with first-degree murder. Prosecutors have not said whether they will seek the death penalty against the male suspects. Morley, because she was 15, cannot be sentenced to death under state law. Batzig, once a close friend of Sweeney's, told police he took several swings at Sweeney with a hatchet, one striking his head with such force that it became stuck. The defendants are due back in court on Jan. 12 for a status hearing. |
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