11-year-old Seattle boy to face prosecution in string of alleged crimes

An 11-year-old boy who was wounded by gunfire during an alleged robbery attempt aboard a Metro bus in August will face prosecution in connection with that incident and two others, a judge has decided.

On Friday morning, the boy agreed to waive "capacity," stipulating that he understood the seriousness of the crimes he is accused of committing despite his age. He was arraigned in King County Juvenile Court and pleaded not guilty to three charges.

He is scheduled for a plea hearing Jan. 7.

The boy's lawyer, Dennis L. McGuire, said he expects the boy will plead guilty to reduced charges during the upcoming hearing, but the details are being negotiated.

Deputy Prosecutor Jennifer Worley said that if the boy pleads guilty to all of the charges, he faces between about 10 and 20 months in a juvenile facility when he is sentenced.

The boy faced a capacity hearing to determine whether he fully understood the crimes he's accused of committing.

Under state law, children between the ages of 8 and 11 are presumed to be incapable of committing a crime unless a judge determines the youth has the "sufficient capacity to understand the act ... and to know that it was wrong."

The Seattle boy was 10 at the time of the crimes he's accused of committing. The Times generally does not name juveniles accused of crimes.

The boy and his two half-brothers, ages 12 and 14, were charged with first-degree attempted robbery in the Aug. 17 incident aboard a Metro bus. Seattle police say the younger boy allegedly ordered a 17-year-old boy to empty his pockets and was accidentally shot during a scuffle on Route 7.

The 17-year-old told police the younger boy unzipped the older boy's backpack and reached inside, where the older boy carried a .22-caliber semi-automatic handgun.

The 17-year-old later told police he was afraid the younger boy was reaching for the gun.

The older boy grabbed the boy in a bear hug, and during the struggle the gun went off inside the backpack, wounding the younger boy in the arm, police said.

Since the incident, the younger boy's half-brothers have pleaded guilty for their roles in the incident and sentenced to serve time in a juvenile facility, prosecutors said.

The 17-year-old has not been charged for having the handgun. Worley said Friday that police are still investigating.

The 11-year-old boy was also charged in a robbery aboard a Metro bus on June 5 in which a man's earring was stolen.

He was also charged in the theft of bicycles outside the Levi's Store in downtown Seattle on June 24.

The boy has been at the King County Youth Service Center since his arrest.

Seattle police say he has been investigated 13 times since he was 8 for crimes that include theft, robbery with assault and robberies with a weapon.

Information from Seattle Times archives is included in this report.

Jennifer Sullivan: 206-464-8294 or jensullivan@seattletimes.com