https://www.startribune.com/family-of-slain-brooklyn-park-woman-rebukes-plea-bargain-offered-to-teen-suspects/600256994/?refresh=trueOn November 9th, 22 year old Haynes and a 17 year and 15 year old Kamara brothers drove to the house of McKeever, the ex girlfriend of Haynes. She had taken out a restraining order against him, and been stalked and harassed repeatedly by him despite it. Haynes and the Kamara brothers plotted to ambush and murder her- Haynes drove the younger two to the house, where they kicked in the door, invaded her home and shot and murdered her in cold blood. Despite the preplanned nature of the crime with obvious malice aforethought and an abundance of physical evidence proving their guilt, prosecutors only sought second degree murder charges for the younger two and first degree murder seeking an aggravated sentence for the 22 year old.
But last month this changed when the newly elected liberal Hennepin Count Attorney took over with a mandate to be more lenient to juvenile defendants. Despite this being a preplanned murder in cold blood during a home invasion, Mary Moriarty has given the two teenagers a plea deal to be tried as juveniles instead of adults, with a sentence of only two years at a juvenile facility- not prison- before returning home on a probation that ends with their 21st birthdays, at which point they get a free slate. Meanwhile Moriarty is still seeking life in prison for the 22 year old Haynes, and justifies her plea deals by stating that a child's mind is not fully formed until age 25. Which she didn't apply to the 22 year old Haynes.
In protest of this decision the lead prosecutor in this case has stepped aside and protests by the family McKeever and her surviving 1 year old daughter, who are now petitioning the judge in the case to reject the plea deal;
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In an hourlong meeting Friday, exasperated relatives peppered Moriarty with questions, demanding to hear her rationale for the abrupt change of course. She explained that sending children to prison is traumatizing and often results in more difficulty reintegrating back into society when they are eventually released in their mid-30s.
In an audio recording obtained by the Star Tribune, Moriarty apologized for how the situation had played out, but held firm in her belief that the system has the best chance of rehabilitating the brothers at Red Wing.
"Murder is the highest crime someone can commit, so I'm just struggling to figure out how you're going to feel safe putting someone back out on the street in a few years that committed murder," Greer replied. "Will you accept it if one or both of them get out and kill again? ... The blood would be on your hands."
So this begs the question: Should child murderers ever be sent to prison? Or should we as a society just accept that anyone under a certain age isn't responsible for their actions, and that age is arbitrary and decided on at random in every case without any consistent scientific or cultural reasoning?