On May 1, 2011, a 10-year-old boy shot his father at point blank range while he was sleeping on the couch. Since this incident, much attention has been given to the case, both because of the child’s age and because his father was a neo-Nazi. The two-week trial has now begun in Riverside County and it will determine whether or not the boy knew he was doing wrong when he pulled the trigger and killed his father.
The prosecution has stated that the boy displayed signs of violence since he was young. He allegedly attacked his teachers, using cords to try to strangle them and even tried to stab them. He had been expelled from every school he had attended and had been diagnosed with attention deficit disorder. The prosecution also said that the boy had told his sister of his plans to kill their father days before the incident occurred. He knew that when you shot someone in the head, you would die.
The boy’s defense attorney, however, stated that he boy was acting to protect his family when he took the gun to kill his father. In fact, J.H. had taken his young son to neo-Nazi rallies in the past and CPS had been called to their home at least 20 times. When the boy thought his father was going to divorce his stepmother, he was afraid he would have to live with his father. This was his way to stop this from occurring.
The boy’s defense attorney also stated that his stepmother may have played a role in the case by manipulating the boy to pull the trigger. The boy even told the judge that he thought he would be a hero because of what he had done. It remains to be seen what exactly the outcome of this case will be as juvenile cases are handled differently than adult cases.
