Town stunned as 8 yr old boy charged with murder of dad & boarder
 

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/11/08/...rss_topstories

FLAGSTAFF, Arizona (AP) -- It's a crime that police officers in a small eastern Arizona community can hardly fathom yet have to deal with: an 8-year-old charged in the fatal shootings of his father and another man.

"Who would think an 8-year-old kid could kill two adults?" St. Johns Police Chief Roy Melnick said Friday.

The crime that unfolded Wednesday evening sent shock waves through St. Johns, a community of about 4,000 people northeast of Phoenix. The boy had no disciplinary record at school, and there was no indication he had any problems at home, prosecutors said.

"It was such a tragedy," said the boy's defense attorney, Benjamin Brewer. "You have two people dead; you have an 8-year-old in jail. It tugs at the heart strings. It's a shocker, no doubt about it."

On Friday, a judge determined there was probable cause to show that the boy fatally shot his father, Vincent Romero, 29, and Timothy Romans, 39, of San Carlos with a .22-caliber rifle. The boy faces two counts of premeditated murder.

i just read this a few seconds ago...this gave me chills!

Why wasn't the gun locked up in a safe? The boy shouldn't have had access to it.

I agree with this. I'm surprised the kid didn't accidently shoot himself. That happens quite often.

Crazy crazy stuff, especially the fact that his father taught him to shoot, at such a young age. I'd be interested how they decided that this was premeditated.

It's a real tragedy, but I hear they want to possibly charge this kid as an adult. He's freaking 8 years old. How in the hell can they charge an 8 year old as an adult? Also, I don't know if those two counts of premeditated murder should hold up either.

Probably there is a lot that the media haven't been told yet. It will be interesting to hear the whole story. And chilling.

Living in AZ, obviously its all over the news here. Friends of the family and neighbors are adamant that the father/son relationship was fine with no signs of abuse. The boarder in the house it seems was an innocent victim. Seems like a case of a sociopath to me. The news is portraying him as a kid who sat in court with no remorse on his face and said he was twirling around in his chair.

Or more proof that he's just a kid who doesn't really grasp what a terrible thing he's done and what he's in for.

Who Stole the Cookie From the Cookie Jar?The best way to interrogate a child.

An 8-year-old Arizona boy charged with murdering his father and another man appeared in court on Monday. Police say the boy confessed to shooting the two men with a .22-caliber gun, but his defense attorneys told reporters that "there could have been improper interview techniques done." What's the "proper" way to interrogate a kid?.....

http://www.slate.com/id/2204374/

jon, do you ever post any original thoughts of your own? You should've changed your screenname to Sir Linksalot.

I'm no psychologist, but from a personal standpoint I don't agree with someone "not understanding" the severity of what they did. By the time you're 8, you know that KILLING someone is not OK. I mean, what child at the age of 2 or 3 isn't taught that it's not OK to hit others, hurt others, etc?

I blame video games.

I do where it it matters. I thought that this article ( http://www.slate.com/id/2204374/ ) was worth a great deal more than me addding my POV to the rest of the pile.
The article speaks rather well for itself.