Teen charged with assaulting middle school student heads to trial
The intersection near Scarlett Middle School where police say a high school student assaulted a middle-schooler.
John Counts | AnnArbor.com
The 16-year-old Huron High School student accused of picking out a Scarlett Middle School student at random and punching him in the face will head to trial, according to court records.
The teen appeared in juvenile court Monday where his public defender asked for a deferred sentencing, which Referee Gail Attenberg declined and requested a bench trial, court records indicate.
A deferred sentencing would have allowed the 16-year-old to have his record wiped clean after probation requirements were met. A pretrial date was set for May 31 in the matter.
AnnArbor.com does not name juveniles involved in criminal cases unless they're tried as adults.
The teen is accused of punching a 14-year-old Scarlett Middle School student, breaking out his teeth and knocking him unconscious, at the corner of Lorraine and LaSalle streets in Ann Arbor on Dec. 12.
Police say the 16-year-old and a 15-year-old Huron student not charged in the incident called a 14-year-old over to them on the crowded sidewalks as students were let out of school for the day.
The two older boys asked the younger boy if he wanted to hang out, according to police. Before the boy could answer, the 16-year-old punched him in the face, police said.
The 14-year-old didn't know the boy and police believe he was picked at random.
The 15-year-old taped the punch with his cellphone's camera, according to the police report. A petition, the equivalent of a warrant, was signed March 8 for a charge of aggravated assault, a misdemeanor punishable by one year of incarceration or a $1,000 fine.
John Counts covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at johncounts@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.
Comments
nickcarraweigh
Sun, May 12, 2013 : 12:25 a.m.
What if we gave victims the right to invoke Sharia law?
a2citizen
Sun, May 12, 2013 : 12:31 a.m.
If only.
Usual Suspect
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 10:40 p.m.
I hope they ran this by the Board of Education first to see if it was OK with them if charges were brought against this kid.
whatsupwithMI
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 10:25 p.m.
revised headline: Trial Date Set for Ann Arbor High School Student
genetracy
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 8:46 p.m.
When is the next "No Justice, No Peace" rally on behalf of the criminal?
Matt Cooper
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 8:22 p.m.
I've read the story and can't seem to see where the 15 year-old is shown to have known what was going to happen, or to have played any accessory part in the assault. Perhaps someone here can explain why there seems to be this 'he recorded it, so he must have known what was about to happen' dogma. A few years ago I taped a man beating up his girlfriend in the parking lot of the apartment complex I lived in. Does that automatically mean I am complicit because, you know, I obviously knew what was going to happen as evidenced by the fact that I taped it (note the dripping sarcasm. I had no idea it was going to happen, I just happened to be in the right place at the right time to catch it on video, which was later turned over to the police). There is nothing here that indicates the 15 year-old knew anything. Some people seem to watch too many episodes of CSI.
a2citizen
Mon, May 13, 2013 : 2:14 a.m.
And if you were ready to take a picture in two seconds...you would be about two seconds too late to photograph the FIRST punch.
Matt Cooper
Mon, May 13, 2013 : 1:07 a.m.
Also, since the moderators at a2.com apparently didn't like my first response to Ricardo, I'll try a slightly different approach. And since Ricardo did start his post by asking me a (sarcastic?) question, I hope you'll at least allow me to answer him. "So you stood and watched and let it happen?". No, I did not. While others who were a lot closer to the fracas began physically intervening, I grabbed my camera and started recording. The police love video-taped documentary evidence because it's very difficult to argue that you didn't do something when someone has it on tape (this is why dash-cams are almost universal in all police cars nowadays). In case you hadn't read my comment to a2citizen, it was my video tape along with eyewitness testimony that sent this guy to jail for a very long time. " Nice guy". Yes, I am a nice guy, and try to be nice to the people around me. Thank you for noticing. "Hope you received plenty of up votes on you tube for your "citizenship". I'm not sure what the point of this comment was if not to be rude and sarcastic, but no, I didn't post this video on youtube, nor have I ever posted anything to youtube. I am not interested in people who don't know me thinking they are qualified to judge my "citizenship" only because they saw a video on youtube. This is why I don't post there. I try to be a good citizen, and I do and have intervened a few times when I've seen men assaulting women because this is who I am, and this is the character I possess. Sorry if that's not agreeable to you, but again, you don't know me, so it's really not fair of you to judge.
Matt Cooper
Mon, May 13, 2013 : 12:53 a.m.
Let's catch up to the 21st century, fellas. Kids nowadays have cell phones. And cell phones nowadays almost always have built in cameras. The cameras that are built in only take about 2 seconds to access and take pictures with. I know this for a fact because I personally own an iPhone 5. Access to the camera such as would allow me to take a picture literally takes no more than 2-3 seconds. Secondly, the police declined to charge the kid who took the picture, which means to me that they don't believe she/he had anything to do with the assault. But of course, you probably know better than the police, right?
Billy
Sun, May 12, 2013 : 11:10 a.m.
"a2citizen, no I didn't get the whole thing. I missed about the first 15-20 seconds of it." Then your incident is in NO WAY comparable to this incident as far as "prior knowledge of the act" goes. Had you started filming several minutes before the assault took place THEN it would be comparable. You don't have a dog in this show....
a2citizen
Sun, May 12, 2013 : 3:33 a.m.
My point is that if the 15 year-old had his cell phone ready to take a picture of the first punch then he knew what was about to happen. That answers the dogma you questioned. Unless, of course, the 15 year-old was going to take the picture so he could turn over the evidence to the police. I know what I believe, this being Oz and all.
Matt Cooper
Sun, May 12, 2013 : 1:49 a.m.
a2citizen, no I didn't get the whole thing. I missed about the first 15-20 seconds of it. I did, however, get him throwing her to the ground, kicking her and punching her while at the same time other people who were closer than I to her intervened and tried to stop the guy from assaulting her. But that has exactly what to do with my original comment? And as for your comment about "You cannot see the difference in : 1. A lengthy beating 2. A single punch.", your point is what? Video is video, whether it's a ten minute taping of a beat down or a 15 second vid of a single punch. My original point was that so many here seem to think that just because some kid caught the event on video that he just had to be a part of the assault in a minimum role of being at least an accessory to the assault. I'm wondering where it says that in the article, or how it is that people seem to presume guilt on the part of someone who hasn't been accused of any crime, nor of any involvement with the crime.
a2citizen
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 10:20 p.m.
Did you tape the entire beating? I doubt it. You cannot see the difference in : 1. A lengthy beating 2. A single punch.
Ricardo Queso
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 9:39 p.m.
So you stood and watched and let it happen? Nice guy. Hope you received plenty of up votes on you tube for your "citizenship".
Tru2Blu76
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 3:31 p.m.
Always pick a smaller, less experienced unwary victim, then pretend to be friendly and then punch them in the face when they respond to your pretend-friendly invitation. What fun!! My daughter (a U of M grad) teaches 3rd grade in another state. Last night, while I was reading the book: "Surviving a School Shooting," she called. She said she's concerned about one of her students, who's just 8 years old. She told me: the boy has frequent outbursts of anger which frighten and intimidate his classmates.. He's fascinated with war and wants to become a soldier. Last week, this 8 year-old punched another boy so hard in a fit of anger that the victim received a concussion. I naturally asked her what was being done about this kid: who seemed to be exactly the kind of kid described in the book I was reading: a future killer. She replied: Dad, the problem is that the boy's father is on the school board and is a major contributor to the school fund drives. In the past, when his son's teachers have tried to get help for the boy, the father has retaliated against the teacher. Behind every bully and anger junky kid: there's a parent doing exactly the opposite of what's needed to keep their own kid and other kids - and teachers - safe from school violence. The behavior described is that of an ambush predator. Question: has any of our schools, school boards or our police departments engaged in a program to deal with this kind of kid? Have any of you read a book like "Surviving A School Shooting?" (there are actually at least 3 other books of this kind - all have been available for at least 5 years). Would anyone in the Ann Arbor school system be interested in knowing how to deal with these "youthful offenders?" How about reading "Rampage - the social roots of school shootings" or "Why Kids Kill?"
a2citizen
Sun, May 12, 2013 : 5:36 p.m.
Did the doctor report the assault to police after diagnosing the concussion?
Tru2Blu76
Sun, May 12, 2013 : 5:31 a.m.
@a2citizen: nothing like baseless skepticism to undermine a vital point in the public interest, is there? Regardless of your "disbelief," my story is true and accurate. :-)
a2citizen
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 7:20 p.m.
I don't believe your story.
Billy
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 4:51 p.m.
Tell your daughter to wear a wire and engage this "father" in conversation about his son. He'll invariable say the WRONG thing, and with that, go to the media. Destroy his career...he certainly deserves it for his nepotistic behavior that puts other children at risk. Zero sympathy for people who hurt others to help themselves. Had his son caused my son a concussion....his son would be facing misdemeanor charges in juvenile court if he wasn't expelled from the school. His father would only have two choices in the matter because charges WOULD be pressed and WOULD go through if you desired...he caused a concussion...that's a brain injury. It could also cause court mandated counseling and treatment for the child...that alone is enough of a reason.
thecompound
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 3:12 p.m.
I still think AAPS has some culpability for allowing a suspended student to ride the bus instead of being escorted home by his guardian/parent!!
zucker
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 2:17 p.m.
hope these two thugs spend some time in "big boy" jail. they will learn some very good lessons there about bullying and predatory behavior. Can't believe they are even walking the streets. The fact that one them taped it proves it was premeditated. Glad that wasn't my child. Neither one of these punks would be "free" to roam the streets right now.
Veracity
Sun, May 12, 2013 : 2:19 p.m.
Very few inmates leave prison "improved."
dextermom
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 5:06 p.m.
I agree. This incident makes me really angry but what good would be served to assault these kids?
Peter
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 2:58 p.m.
Are you saying that you think the 16 and 15 year olds in this story should be violently assaulted in prison in retaliation for their crimes?
Billy
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 12:05 p.m.
Also....get him out of juvenile court and charge him as an adult.
Billy
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 12:03 p.m.
"Police say the 16-year-old and a 15-year-old Huron student not charged in the incident called a 14-year-old over to them on the crowded sidewalks as students were let out of school for the day." Why aren't they charged?
John Counts
Mon, May 13, 2013 : 12:42 a.m.
The 16-year-old in that paragraph is the same 16-year-old in the rest of the story who was charged. There seems to be a lot of concern about why the 15-year-old student wasn't charged. Investigators didn't mention anything about potential charges against the 15-year-old in the police report, which we obtained via a Freedom of Information Act request. About the only thing he could be charged with is conspiracy to commit assault. Police must not have thought what he allegedly did warranted that charge.
Peregrine
Sun, May 12, 2013 : 12:58 a.m.
It's hard to parse, but *THE* 16-year-old was charged, and *A* 15-year-old was not charged.
dave2458
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 11:46 a.m.
Perfect eye for an eye situation. Let the middle school student punch this little punk in the face. Doubt the slap on the wrist is going to teach these little punks a lesson.
Veracity
Sun, May 12, 2013 : 2:17 p.m.
Also if the 14-year old were to hit the 16-year old and cause his death then the 14-year old could be charged with manslaughter.
iamwater
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 11:35 p.m.
Would it ever occur to you that maybe the victim of this doesn't WANT to be violent? We all know how the old eye for an eye ends up. Blind.
Davewilk
Sat, May 11, 2013 : 11:19 a.m.
If the 15 year old (who is not charged) taped the event on his camera phone that suggests to me he knew the punch was coming. He should be charged as well, since he helped lure the victim.
grimmk
Sun, May 12, 2013 : 8:27 a.m.
Or as an accomplice.