Judge rules 2 Little Rock teens to face robbery trials as adults

Keith Lamont Harris, left, and Davin Terrell Allen
Keith Lamont Harris, left, and Davin Terrell Allen

Pulaski County Circuit Judge Herb Wright on Tuesday ordered two teenage armed-robbery suspects to stand trial as adults, largely because the state's juvenile-justice system does not have adequate resources to provide them with the rehabilitative programs they and their families need.

"The court is concerned with the sufficiency of the resources available to the juvenile [court] division and finds that the programs in their current form would fail when applied to the circumstances of this case," the judge's ruling states.

Charged as adults by prosecutors, Keith Lamont Harris, 16, and Davin Terrell Allen, 17, had petitioned Wright to transfer their aggravated-robbery and theft charges to juvenile court. They can appeal the judge's ruling.

The teens are accused of targeting Hispanic victims in Little Rock in July in the belief that Hispanics are more likely to carry cash and less likely to call police. Their lawyers argued at a hearing last week that the teens had the potential to be redeemed if they and their families could get help available though the juvenile-justice system, which focuses on rehabilitation over punishment.

Both teens and their families could use state assistance, but the juvenile system has not been given what it needs to help them, Wright stated in his ruling. That absence means that there's little chance they can be rehabilitated before they turn 21, which is the standard required by law, he wrote.

[EMAIL UPDATES: Get free breaking news alerts, daily newsletters with top headlines delivered to your inbox]

ADVERTISEMENT

More headlines

Even taking into consideration scientific evidence that shows children accused of crimes should be treated differently from adults because their brain development makes them more amenable to rehabilitation, without some possibility that the teens can be helped through juvenile court, the protection of society mandates that they be prosecuted as adults, the judge wrote.

"This court hopes that all juvenile offenders may be rehabilitated within the system, but unless that system is provided with better resources, this will not happen.

"The court has weighed the efficacy of these programs and services against the legitimate and necessary concerns about the protection of society from violent offenders, as required by statute," the judge wrote.

"As is so often the situation with juvenile transfers, this court's decision comes down to balancing the seriousness of the offense and whether the protection of society requires the case be kept in the [adult court]."

Wright issued his findings in separate rulings for the teens, but he found they both had a lot in common with each other and with other youths charged as adults that have stood before him.

Both are from poor home environments where they are being raised by single mothers doing the best they can, his ruling stated. Those women cannot provide the teens with the supervision they need and hold down jobs necessary to support their families, he wrote.

The evidence shows that Harris and Allen have been engaged in dangerous and violent behavior, he wrote. But there's also evidence that both also are acting like normal teenagers, his ruling states.

They are trying to fit in with their peers and make friends by doing things each teen believes will bring him the attention he desires, according to the judge's findings.

"This does not excuse his conduct in this matter, but the court wishes to point out that if we fail to attempt to examine and understand the circumstances of this behavior, society will continue to suffer the consequences of this problem," the rulings state.

"Pointing a firearm at someone and robbing them of both their property and sense of security is shocking and unacceptable behavior for a child or an adult."

Wright noted that Harris already had been in juvenile court on three misdemeanor charges -- criminal mischief, fleeing and criminal mischief -- and a felony breaking or entering charge.

Out of his 11 other siblings, four have been in juvenile court at some time, including a brother currently participating in the Arkansas National Guard's C-Step boot-camp juvenile rehabilitation program, the judge wrote.

Harris' mother has a history of illegal drug use, and he and his siblings were removed from her custody by authorities in 2004, the judge wrote, noting that his father was accidentally shot in 2006 by someone having a "psychotic drug episode."

The mother of 12 children now is holding down a job that required her to work a night shift that ended just in time for her son's hearing last week, the judge stated.

Allen's mother could not attend that hearing because she was participating in required training at her new job, he wrote.

In a letter presented to the judge, she wrote that she had tried to get help from both Pulaski County Circuit juvenile court and Allen's school. But both times she was told that he could not be helped unless he had been charged with a crime or ruled to be delinquent, the judge wrote.

"She has asked authorities for help multiple times but has been unable to procure services for her son," the Allen ruling states. "Unfortunately, she was unable to protect her son from falling prey to his own impulses and surroundings."

Unable do more for Allen, his mother finally sent him to live with his aunt in the hopes that being around the aunt's boyfriend and their children would give him a male role model, the judge wrote.

That move was also done to separate him from friends his family considered to be a bad influence. He'd started developing those friendships after he'd transferred from Hall High School to Central High and lost his interest in sports, the judge wrote.

Metro on 05/03/2017

Upcoming Events