Father 'murdered' by son, aged 8


An eight-year-old boy has been charged with the murder of his father and another man in the US state of Arizona.

Police in St Johns, a small community north-east of Phoenix, said the child had confessed to shooting the two men with a .22-calibre rifle on Wednesday.

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

A judge has ordered a psychological evaluation of the boy, who is being held at a juvenile detention centre.

He did not have a record of bad behaviour at school, and there had been no indication of any problems at home, prosecutors said.

Mr Melnick said police officers had arrived at the child's home within minutes of the shooting on Wednesday evening.

They found one victim just outside the front door and the other dead in an upstairs room, he added.

The second man is believed to have been lodging in the house.

The boy had gone to a neighbour's house and said he "believed that his father was dead", Apache County prosecutor Brad Carlyon said. Police later obtained a confession from the boy for the two killings.

His defence lawyer, Benjamin Brewer, said police had overreached in questioning him without representation from a parent or a lawyer, and that they had not advised him of his rights.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7717545.stm

what is the world coming to?

i don't know.

an 8 years old?

He bought the child a gun and taught him how to shoot it. I can think of a million other things that you can teach an 8 year old boy than shooting to kill.

Outstrip:

He bought the child a gun and taught him how to shoot it. I can think of a million other things that you can teach an 8 year old boy than shooting to kill.

exactly!!hope obama will have another look at the gun laws in america,with the way things are going there canada nr america manufactures guns yet they have stricter gun controll laws

that is so sad, his father probably abused him, but even then that is no excuse to take someones life

He was 8 there is a 50-50 chance he did not do it on purpose i mean which 8 year old would want to grow up without a daddy?

@ Topic,

Sad story, it was all over the news today. . . . . . .

(CNN) -- An 8-year-old Arizona boy suspected in the deaths of his father and another man can be heard in a videotape of his police interview telling officers that he shot both men after he came home from school.
Vincent Romero and Tim Romans were found dead in Romero's home in St. Johns, Arizona.

Vincent Romero and Tim Romans were found dead in Romero's home in St. Johns, Arizona.

Authorities released the tape Tuesday.

The boy, sitting cross-legged in an overstuffed armchair, initially denied involvement in the shootings but later said he shot his already wounded father "because he was suffering."

The two officers questioning the boy press him to tell the truth, with one saying at one point, "If you're not honest with me, if you're not truthful, it's not going to look good."

The boy later appears to admit to shooting his father, saying, "After I shot him once he was still moving, I think I shot him again."

He says on the tape he shot both men twice.

Police released the first 12 minutes of the tape, which did not include the alleged confession, earlier Tuesday and released the remainder of the tape late Tuesday afternoon. Video Watch police interrogate the boy »

The boy is charged with killing his father, Vincent Romero, 29, along with Tim Romans, 39, a man who rented a room in Romero's home in St. Johns, Arizona. Police have said the boy confessed to shooting the men with a .22-caliber handgun.

At the end of the footage, the boy buries his face in his jacket as one officer asks, "You OK, sweetie?"

The officers ask whether the boy was mad at his father, but the answer is not audible.
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A judge issued a gag order in the case, preventing police, prosecutors or defense attorneys from commenting on it.

He later modified it, allowing public records -- which included the tape -- to be released, Apache County Attorney Christopher Candelaria said.

"We released it because it becomes a public record, and we're obligated to release it," Candelaria said, refusing to elaborate on why the tape was a public record in an ongoing police investigation.

The boy has not entered a plea to the murder charges. One of his defense attorneys said he was not read his rights and did not have an attorney or a parent present during questioning and said that was improper. Police have not responded to those claims. Video Watch Lisa Bloom say interrogators were leading the boy »

"They became very accusing early on in the interview," defense attorney Ben Brewer told The Associated Press last week. "Two officers with guns at their side, it's very scary for anybody, for sure an 8-year-old kid."

In the first 12 minutes of the tape, the boy tells police he decided to walk around the block "like nine or 10 times" before going home -- something he does on Mondays and Wednesdays "because my mom doesn't get off until 5."

He said he was about two houses down from his home when he saw a white car "driving pretty fast" in front of his house. Then, he said, he saw Romans lying on the ground. The boy said he ran over to Romans, then ran inside the house calling for his father.

"I said, 'Dad, Dad,' " the boy said. "And then I went upstairs, and then I saw him, and there was blood all over his face, and I think I touched it , and I didn't hear anything, and I just saw blood and I cried for about 30 minutes, just crying right next to him."

On the tape, the child continued to deny being home when the slayings took place.

"You're sure?" one officer asks. "Because I heard something that somebody said that somebody was calling your name and you weren't answering."

The boy said he eventually ran to the house of a girl he knows and told her brother that his father was dead, "and so he called his dad , and we called you guys."

Romans' truck was parked in the driveway, the boy said, and the door was open.
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Police said last week they were attempting to discern a motive in the slayings.

"We solved the crime," St. Johns Police Chief Roy Melnick told KPHO. "Now we have to solve the mystery of why."

I read this new info on the case today and I am starting to believe that this boy probably did not do it. Why did the police interview him without a family member present

I watched the video this morning, i think this boy is a confused 8 yr who was tricked into making a "confession". One albeit filled with maybes and i dont know.

Its not likely the boy did it. i think the police has bungled this case big time.

[flash=425,344]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKkm_Fe6t8I&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&fs=1[/flash]

I could not watch the video cause I was at work but even reading this new information it sounds like the police need to find their killer

Outstrip:

I read this new info on the case today and I am starting to believe that this boy probably did not do it. Why did the police interview him without a family member present

That has been  my sentiment from the get go

at 8 years our househelps or my mother were still moulding my garri balls for me
How can an 8 year old kill?

at 8 years our househelps or my mother were still moulding my garri balls for me Lips sealed
How can an 8 year old kill?

Because they don't eat molded garri that retards their growth both physically and mentally. Is that why you ain't tall till now?. Don't feed your children with garri, try animal protein.

sharap dia deepzone

i have done so.

These police can never be trusted.