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Old 02-15-2005, 07:51 PM   #1
JulieCitySlicker
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OMG! What is the world coming to?

This just makes me sick Where the hell were these parents This was on the news today!

Girl, 12, accused of strangling 9-year-old sister over a hamburger

07:59 AM CST on Tuesday, February 15, 2005

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- A 12-year-old St. Louis girl has been charged under the juvenile code with murder for allegedly killing her 9-year-old sister in a dispute over a hamburger, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Tuesday.

A Family Court judge will decide if the girl should be tried as an adult.

The older girl reported her sister was lifeless in their home near downtown Dec. 22. Authorities could find no evidence of violence on the body of the seemingly healthy child, and autopsies offered no insight. Medical Examiner Michael Graham ruled the cause of death undetermined.

But police received a phone call from a social worker Feb. 1. The 12-year-old, who had said she found the body, was in a hospital psychiatric unit, suffering visions and nightmares.

The girl had told staff there she strangled her sister during a quarrel over a hamburger, police said. On Monday, Graham ruled the case a homicide.

The girl is now under the care of the Hawthorn Children's Psychiatric Hospital. She could be placed in a juvenile center as early as this week.

If convicted as a juvenile, the maximum penalty would be confinement until her 21st birthday.

"It's got to be devastating for the mother," detective Tim Reagan said. "I can't imagine losing a child to the hands of a sibling. It's a true tragedy."

Authorities gave this account:

The two girls had been home alone. The 12-year-old called her mother, crying, about 9:15 p.m. Dec. 22, saying she had found her sister unresponsive on the bedroom floor of their apartment.

The mother instructed her to get help from a neighbor, who arrived and called 911. The mother arrived home and used CPR until paramedics arrived. But the girl was pronounced dead at Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital.

The older sister told police at the time that she had been watching television in the living room while the younger sister was in a bedroom. The older girl said she checked on her sibling, thought she was asleep and tried to wake her.

Later, the 12-year-old apparently began having emotional problems at school, and officials there asked her mother to have her undergo a psychiatric evaluation, authorities said.
__________________
Oh
I'm a wandering soul
I'm still walking the line that leads me home
alone
All I know
I still got mountains to climb
on my own


Enough To Let Me Go-Switchfoot

Last edited by JulieCitySlicker : 02-15-2005 at 07:55 PM.
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