Alleged robbers may be tried as adults
Prosecutors want to try a pair of alleged teen robbers as adults for two armed heists last month.
The defendants, Terrence Antwain Johnson, 17, and Justin McGee, 16, will face a transfer hearing before Juvenile Court Judge Larry Ross on Sept. 27. If they are transferred, they will join fellow suspect, Marcus Johnson, 21, when his robbery case goes before the grand jury next month.
The charges come for a pair of robberies last month of Delta Express on Beersheba Street and the Shell Station at Morrison. The heists happened back-to-back as the youths went from one establishment to another, garnering only $300 combined in the robberies. They were seen leaving Morrison Shell when Sheriff’s Lt. Mark Griffith, acting on a hunch, headed to the station after hearing about the Delta Express heist. The stores had been robbed back-to-back before.
The suspects were arrested following a chase in which the deputy opened fire on their vehicle. The money, as well as disguises and the gun, were found. One of the teens supposedly had taken the gun used in the heist from his grandfather.
The request for transfer means the teens could face significant time in prison if convicted. Under juvenile law, the most they could be sentenced to is confinement until their 19th birthdays. If transferred to adult court, the youths could face eight to 12 years on both the robbery counts.
During the transfer hearing, Judge Ross will consider several things such as their ages, past juvenile records, attempts at rehabilitation, their danger to society, and seriousness of the crime.