Tennessee Criminal Lawyer Blog

In what may be one of the most shocking stories you will ever read, a fifteen year-old New jersey girl is charged with aggravated sexual assault, promoting prostitution, and other crimes after she allowed her seven year-old stepsister to be raped by as many as seven men in exchange for money. The teen was reportedly approached with the idea by a group of men in her apartment complex. The teen agreed and led her sister to the apartment where the men were gathered. She then left her sister alone with a group of men while she headed to the back room to conduct her own business. Not knowing what had happened to their two daughters, the girls’ parents had called the police to report that their daughters had run away. After the men had finished with the girls’, the teen dressed herself and left, leaving her little sister behind at the apartment. A couple of men reportedly found her later and lead her home, where she told what had happened. The prosecutor in this case is planning to ask the court to try the teenager as an adult.

In Tennessee, a minor can only be tried as an adult in certain circumstances. The general rule is that a child can be tried as an adult if the child was sixteen years or older at the time of the alleged conduct, or the child was less than sixteen years of age if the child is charged with the offense of first degree murder, second degree murder, rape, aggravated rape, rape of a child, aggravated robbery, especially aggravated robbery, kidnapping, aggravated kidnapping or especially aggravated kidnapping or an attempt to commit any such offenses. Thus, it would appear that if a prosecutor wanted to charge the teen in this situation as an adult in Tennessee, the teen would have to be charged with one of those enumerated offenses. Given the circumstances of the case, it is conceivable that the teen could be charged with some form of one of the listed rape offenses.

Being tried as an adult instead of a juvenile constitutes an immense enhancement in punishment and consequences for many offenses. The decision to try a minor as an adult is one that is not taken lightly by the court and involves a host of considerations. The best course of action for someone who is facing such a situation would be to seek representation from an experienced Knoxville criminal defense attorney who can guide them through the trial process.

Source: http://www.aolnews.com/crime/article/trenton-nj-teen-sold-stepsister-7-for-party-sex-police-say/19422229