Juan Carlos Negrete-Vasquez sits during his 2011 aggravated murder trial in Washington County Circuit Court. Brent Wojahn/The Oregonian (Brent Wojahn/The Oregonian)
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on January 23, 2015 at 5:52 PM, updated January 23, 2015 at 6:00 PM
A 13-year-old boy Mexican Anchor baby or illegal alien in other words a killers that should be in Mexico
charged in the bludgeoning and stabbing death of another teenager in 2009 was rightfully tried as an adult, the Oregon Court of Appeals has ruled.
Juan Carlos Negrete-Vasquez became one of the youngest Oregonians convicted of aggravated murder when a judge found him guilty in 2011 for his role in the Cornelius slaying of 18-year-old Eduardo Andrade-Alcantar.
For certain serious crimes, juveniles ages 12 to 14 can be tried in adult court if a judge determines they have "sufficient sophistication and maturity to appreciate the nature and quality of the conduct involved" and also meet other criteria.
On appeal, Negrete-Vasquez contended that Washington County Circuit Judge Jim Fun made a mistake when he decided the teen understood what he had done. Fun, who sent the case to adult court, should have evaluated him "in a more holistic sense" and considered his "vulnerability to peer pressure," his attorney argued.
In a 9-2 ruling Thursday, the higher court disagreed, saying the "sophistication and maturity" finding is only the first step that allows a judge to then consider other criteria before sending a juvenile to adult court. Judge Fun, after weighing public safety, the youth's mental health, the gravity of the offense and other factors, then concludedthat trying the teen as an adult was appropriate.
The dissenting opinion, however, said the majority reached an "extremely low-threshold interpretation" of the law. The elements of the statute, according to the dissent, "also align with the science of brain development, which shows that – due to the physical structure of adolescent brains – teenagers and younger juveniles have limited capacity to make moral judgments and experience empathy, and are particularly susceptible to peer pressure."
The majority's opinion will "ensure that all but the most developmentally challenged youths will be capable of being waived into the adult criminal system," Judge James Egan wrote in the dissent.
In response, the majority said its interpretation won't automatically send juveniles to adult court. After a juvenile has been deemed adequately sophisticated, the ruling said, the law still requires an "extensive individualized analysis" to determine whether the case should be heard in adult court.
At Negrete-Vasquez's 2011 court trial before Circuit Judge Steven Price, who has since retired, the defense argued that the teen acted on the orders of an older co-defendant. His girlfriend's older brother, Alejandro Aguilar-Mandujano, age 20 at the time of the killing, pleaded guilty to aggravated murder and received life in prison without parole.
Negrete-Vasquez is serving a life sentence with a chance for parole after 30 years.
-- Emily E. Smith
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