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Girl charged in Joyner-Francis death will be tried as a juvenile

Megan Pauly/Delaware Public Media

A 16-year-old girl charged in the death of a fellow Howard High school student will not be tried as an adult, avoiding a potential eight year sentence.

In an opinion issued Friday, Family Court Judge Robert Coonin says Trinity Carr can be rehabilitated, despite calling it a "tragic" incident "with a horrific outcome, an outcome that will have a longstanding impact on a family, a school and a community for many years."

Carr was charged with criminally negligent homicide after assaulting Amy Joyner-Francis in a Howard High bathroom in April.

Joyner-Francis later died due to an underlying heart condition.

“Whether [Carr] is tried in the Family Court or in the Superior Court, that outcome will not change; the senseless loss of a young girl’s life cannot be undone nor will the pain inflicted upon her family ever be extinguished," wrote Coonin.

If convicted in Family Court, Carr could only be held until she was 19-years-old, or two and a half years from now.

She could have faced a maximum of eight years in prison if she had been tried as an adult.

A spokesman for the state Department of Justice declined to comment on the ruling.

When determining if a child can be tried as an adult, family court judges must consider several factors:

  • How the citizens of Delaware can be best protected
  • If the crime resulted in death or serious injury
  • A defendant's past criminal history
  • If any other alleged participants in the crime are charged as an adult
  • Any other relevant factors in the case

Carr had no criminal history and both a state youth rehabilitative services officer and psychologist said she could be rehabilitated as a juvenile.
A video of the attack shown in a hearing last week depicted Carr dragging Joyner-Francis into a handicapped stall while punching and kicking her in the head.

Wilmington Police detective Thomas Curley testified that Joyner-Francis's "fingernails were torn off." 

But an autopsy report and the video show no evidence that her fingernails were purposefully ripped or torn off, instead of simply being broken while trying to fend of the attack, according to the opinion.

Two other girls, Zion Snow and Chakeira Wright are charged with third degree criminal conspiracy, but will appear in Family Court as well.

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