Judge Forced to Explain Charges to Nine-Year-Old Facing Five Counts of Murder

Paula Liu
By Paula Liu
October 22, 2019US News
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Judge Forced to Explain Charges to Nine-Year-Old Facing Five Counts of Murder
A Judge's gavel in a file photo. (Okan Caliskan, Pixabay)

An Illinois judge issuing charges to a nine-year-old facing five counts of murder had to explain in court on Oct. 21 what the charges meant. The nine-year-old did not understand what he was facing, according to multiple reports.

The nine-year-old only identified as Kyle by his mother, Katie Alwood, sat in court listening to the judge while charges were being handed down—Kyle was responsible for a fire that took five lives in a mobile home fire on April 6, according to New York Daily News. The people who died in the fire were; the boyfriend of Kyle’s mother, Kyle’s grandmother, his two siblings ages two and one, as well as his two-year-old cousin, according to the news outlet.

The Washington Post reported that by the time the firefighters came to put out the fire that day, the five people had already perished. Investigators who were on the case did not reveal much about who caused the fire. But they all know that the nine-year-old was responsible for starting it, according to the news outlet.

During a court session on Oct. 21 at the Woodford County juvenile court, the boy was charged with five counts of first-degree murder and three counts of arson, according to the Washington Post. The nine-year-old didn’t fully understand what was happening and what the judge was saying. Judge Charles Feeney carefully explained in detail to the nine-year-old what he would be facing, according to the Washington Post.

“committed the offense of first-degree murder and you … set fire to trailer residence … thereby caused the death of Jason Wall,” the judge told the nine-year-old, according to the Chicago Tribune.

When asked if the nine-year-old understood what was going on, the boy shook his head and said, “No,” Chicago Tribune reported.

“What don’t you understand?” Feeney asked the nine-year-old. and was told by the boy, “What I did.”

Judge Feeney went over the charges again, this time, explaining with much further detail that would be easily understood by an elementary school student, according to the Washington Post.

The news outlet reported that it wasn’t clear whether there was a plea deal given, or if Kyle had entered it. If he is found guilty of the charges, he will face probation, along with treatment and counseling. According to state law, the nine-year-old is too young to be sent to detention, where the minimum age is 10, and the minimum age for imprisonment is 13.

Alwood said she thinks her son should be forgiven, and what happened was an accident. She told the news outlet her son was diagnosed with a form of schizophrenia, ADHD, as well as bipolar disorder, according to the Washington Post.

“Everyone is looking at him like he’s some kind of monster, but that’s not who he is. People make mistakes, and that’s what this is. Yes, it was a horrible tragedy, but it’s still not something to throw his life away over,” his mother said, according to New York Daily News.

Currently, Kyle is in the custody of the Department of Child and Family Services, as a “child of the state.” If convicted of the crimes he’s charged with, he will face five years on probation as a minimum.

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