Teen to serve nine years for killing Doris Johnson student

Mon, Aug 29th 2016, 03:05 PM

In a surprise mid-trial decision, two teenagers involved in the vicious stabbing death of Doris Johnson student Adonai Wilson entered guilty pleas yesterday.

The convicts, ages 17 and 16, were charged with murder for the December 9, 2015 attack on Wilson, a deadly end to an afterschool fight that was, according to the evidence, started by the deceased.

On Thursday, the convicts maintained their not guilty pleas to the murder charge and the 17-year-old pleaded guilty to manslaughter while the 16-year-old pleaded guilty to causing harm.

Prosecutor Kristan Stubbs said the Crown would continue its case against a third accused, age 18, notwithstanding the guilty pleas.

According to the prosecution's case, the deceased and the eldest accused were walking home with their respective groups of friends when they got into a fight near P C Engineers on Prince Charles Drive.

The 17-year-old entered the fight and stabbed Wilson, while the 16-year-old attempted to cause harm to him. Both convicts addressed Wilson's family and apologized for their actions. However, Justice Bernard Turner noted that those apologies "were cold comfort" to Wilson's bereaved family.

The grief of the families of both the deceased and the convicts was palpable.

In their mitigation pleas, Ian Cargill, for the 17-year-old, and Roberto Reckley, for the 16-year-old, asked the court to show leniency based on their youth and guilty pleas.

Turner told the 17-year-old that manslaughter carried a maximum term of life imprisonment. However, Turner felt that a nine-year sentence was appropriate. He arrived at the calculation by starting with an 18-year sentence and deducting three years for his youth; one third for the guilty plea and an additional year for the time spent in custody.

He told the convict that term could be reduced to six years with time off for good behavior.

Turner told the man that nothing that he or the court did could undo his actions and that the "the grief and pain will remain with the family of Adonai Wilson for the rest of their lives."

The judge advised the convict to make the best of his second chance upon release from prison.
He said, "You will have a chance once again in life; Adonai Wilson's life is at an end."

The youngest convict was sentenced to six months' detention at the Simpson Penn School For Boys. He will remain under supervised release by the probation department until his 21st birthday.

Artesia Davis, Guardian Senior Reporter

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