This browser does not support the Video element.
Families of slain teens call on juvenile suspects to be charged as adults
The families of two teenagers killed in separate incidents in Oakland and San Jose say they are upset that Prop. 57 emphasizes rehabilitation and that prosecutors can no longer directly charge juveniles in certain crimes as adults. That decision is now up to judges.
OAKLAND, Calif. - Two separate Bay Area families impacted by violence at the hands of a minor are calling for change to the juvenile justice system.
Family and supporters gathered outside the Alameda County Juvenile Justice Center on Monday to draw attention to the case of Derbing Alvarado, a 15-year-old who was robbed and fatally shot in East Oakland.
A 16-year-old has been charged with murder and robbery, but as a juvenile. The slain teen's family believes the suspect should be tried as an adult.
The family is advocating for changes to Proposition 57, a law passed by voters in 2016 that emphasizes rehabilitation and requires judges, not prosecutors, to decide if minors should be charged as juveniles or adults.
Speaking through an interpreter, Derbing's mother, Maria Jose Gonzalez, shared her frustration: "It's not fair. I just feel like he needs to be charged as an adult, not as a child, because he wasn't a child when he did that."
Family of slain Oakland teen speaks out
What they're saying:
In March, Derbing was on his way to soccer practice when he was confronted by a group demanding his backpack. He was shot while attempting to disarm the 16-year-old suspect of an AR pistol.
"Life over a damn backpack," said Derbing's father, also named Derbing Alvarado, through an interpreter. "There's a lot of families out there with the same situation."
Similar plea by family of boy killed in San Jose
What they're saying:
In San Jose, 15-year-old David Gutierrez was stabbed to death at Santana Row on Valentine's Day while on a date with his girlfriend.
A 13-year-old boy is being tried for murder as a juvenile, a decision that angers David's aunt, Diana Gutierrez. She said the suspect faces only months in a secure facility.
"Regardless of their age, how is [sentencing] him to six to eight months —how does he understand the severity of what he did? It's a capital crime, what he committed," she said.
KTVU legal analyst Michael Cardoza said it's all but impossible to amend Prop. 57.
"What they should look at is getting money to the criminal justice system, give them the tools to rehabilitate," Cardoza said. "They're upset, and they're upset rightfully, but they're not gonna change this law. This law is set almost in stone."
Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan
The Source: KTVU reporting