Should he be free???

[SaadBell 0]

I was involved in this case, and worked with this young mans uncle. I am concerned that they are relasing him, his crime was pretty violent. Better to kill someone, even your own father, than get caught with a pound of marijuana, now that would have gotten him a lot more time.

April 10, 2008

Alex King a free man after prison time in father's killing

From staff reports

Alex King, one of the youngest people ever convicted of murder in Florida, was released Wednesday morning from the state prison near Cocoa.

"He was released at 9:45 a.m. It was a normal release," said Department of Corrections spokeswoman Gretl Plessinger.

Alex was 12 and his brother, Derek, was 13 when they killed their father, Terry King, at their Cantonment home on Nov. 26, 2001.

In pleading guilty to third-degree murder, Derek admitted to using a baseball bat to crush the skull of his sleeping father, and Alex confessed to helping come up with the murder plan.

Alex King was sentenced to seven years but was released early because of good behavior. He will remain on probation for five years.

Derek King was sentenced to eight years and is being held in the Lancaster Correctional Facility in Gilchrist County, west of Gainesville. He is scheduled for release in May 2009.

[*JG* 2]

This sort of thing always saddens me.

[AlHayatZween 2]

In pleading guilty to third-degree murder, Derek admitted to using a baseball bat to crush the skull of his sleeping father, and Alex confessed to helping come up with the murder plan.

i know he was just a child at the time, but this was extremely violent.

i hope whatever happens, he is rehabilitated and gets the help that he needs...

hz

[almaty 19]

he was probably conviceted as a juvenile..that is, not tried as an adult..and ususally release dates are shorten

[Ban Hammer 13,643]

sounds like a great kid. glad he's not near me.

[sara..... 371]

i dont know the history of this case but my mind tells me that when u reach the age of 12 u know right from wrong

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Some sort of extensive (long term) psychiatric evaluation would seem to be needed before they should even think about returning him to society.

[almaty 19]

brother #6, sadly that will not happen...usually the parole board base their decision on many variables..and going to counseling even for a short time is seen as rehab...

[SaadBell 0]

They were to be charged as adults, and that meant life with out possible parole, but as you can see, not happening. The violent nature of the crime, and the fire to get rid of evidence. They did have the help of their neigbor, some loser, but the fact remains, he took that baseball bat and killed his father. That was personal I have heard time and time again from men that have killed before, and they have told me, once you kill, the second time is not as hard. When you interview the boys, their apparence is normal, you have to listen really closely to things they say, kinda of like word salad. Not the first time this has happen, and it won't be the last. Hopefully they will fly straight, but the odds are against it. There have been child killers before who are relased never to offend again, but it still creeps me out.

[Carlawarla 1]

I remember this case. If possible you should google it, and find out more about the case. Without going into detail here, it's my belief that these children were manipulated and abused by Ricky Marvin Chavis. Sending these kids to prison instead of a theraputic environment was a horrible injustice.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

I remember this case. If possible you should google it, and find out more about the case. Without going into detail here, it's my belief that these children were manipulated and abused by Ricky Marvin Chavis. Sending these kids to prison instead of a theraputic environment was a horrible injustice.

I've never really been comfortable with the idea of charging children as adults.

[SaadBell 0]

Yes Ricky Marvin Chavis, was involved in the boys and the father’s murder. Chavis was a registered sex offender; they are trying to charge him now with the murder. I have to tell you, the family of the boys, very strange people. As long as they stay in some kind of counseling than I will feel at least a little better. Most likely they will slip through the loops like a lot of kids. Of course now they will be adults, I too don't think a child should be charged as an adult, plus prison is nothing but a finishing school these days.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

I remember this case. If possible you should google it, and find out more about the case. Without going into detail here, it's my belief that these children were manipulated and abused by Ricky Marvin Chavis. Sending these kids to prison instead of a theraputic environment was a horrible injustice.

I've never really been comfortable with the idea of charging children as adults.

I've never been comfortable the idea of treating a 15 year old gang banger as a child. Adulthood shouldn't be a number, it should be something you demonstrate by your actions. If you're 12 years old, killed someone, planned it out, understand what you did, understand the consequences, then you just did an adult deed. Nothing child-like about it.

I'm also uncomfortable with charging children as adults. I'm just as uncomfortable, however, with assuming everyone below a certain age is actually a child.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Scientific studies have determined that the human brain undergoes continuous development up to the age of about twenty-one. “Because the brains of juveniles, particularly the frontal lobes, are not fully developed, youths lack the ability to perform critical adult functions, such as plan, anticipate consequences, and control impulses,” states Adam Ortiz, a policy fellow with the American Bar Association Juvenile Justice Center. Although juveniles should be punished for their crimes, they are not as responsible as adults. “This is the premise beneath society's across-the-board restrictions on voting rights, alcohol and tobacco consumption, and serving in the armed forces,” observes Ortiz. “Indeed, this is why we refer to those under 18 as `minors' and `juveniles'—because, in so many respects, they are less than adult.”

By this reasoning, the mere act of punishing a juvenile as an adult is immoral. The United States, according to Amnesty International, is the only Western democracy that tries children as adults.

http://socialissues.wiseto.com/Articles/FO3020630074/

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

I think more of a distinction needs to be made between the bad and the mad..