Parents say they repeatedly tried to get the teens help
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Two teens who took part in a smoke shop robbery learned their fate Wednesday. One is headed to Spring Mountain Youth Camp, while the other is headed is a juvenile correctional facility. A third teen who was stabbed by the store owner after he jumped over the counter remains hospitalized.
Parents of both teens who appeared virtually in juvenile court told Clark County District Court Judge Sunny Bailey they repeatedly tried to get their sons help.
The adoptive parents of the first teen to face Judge Bailey said the teen has not been willing to receive treatment for trauma he experienced as a child and that he has been self-medicating.
“Unfortunately, the systems in this state don’t, they’re not good for that,” the father said.
Judge Bailey acknowledged that the teen was abused by his biological parents, and beaten so badly at age six, that he was unrecognizable. His attorney, Mandy McKellar said he was exposed to drugs in utero.
The parents said they have tried to get the teen services for a decade. “His story alone would be an amazing movie of what happens, how it happens when he went through the whole system and he ended up here,” the father said.
The teen has had previous run-ins with the law including cases involving a bomb threat and a weapon. Judge Bailey pointed to the chances the teen has already had and is sending him to a juvenile correctional facility.
“I know what I did was wrong and I regret every bit of it,” he said.
The second teen to face Judge Bailey also offered an apology. “I apologize not only to the store owner but to everybody that was affected by my actions,” he said.
Judge Bailey is sending the teen to Spring Mountain Youth Camp. The decision came after his father explained he also has tried to get his son help. He said the family is coping with the loss of two family members due to murder, and that he has tried to get his son services for the past four years.
“I’m reaching out to the courts asking not for mercy, leniency, or any of that, but asking to get the proper help I need to save my son from becoming a statistic or full-fledged member of the penal system,” the father said.
Judge Bailey did not specify any timeframe for the teens to spend in the youth camp or the juvenile correctional facility. This is typical for a juvenile case. Judge Bailey explained it is aimed at being rehabilitative.
As the I-Team first reported, all three teens have cases in the juvenile system. They met in drug court. At the time of the robbery, two of the teens were wearing GPS monitors. According to Judge Bailey, one of the GPS monitors did not function properly in the moments after the robbery.
The extent of the injuries to the teen who was stabbed are not yet known. His attorney said that he is expected to need to go to a rehabilitation facility after his release from the hospital.
Store owner Johnny Nguyen told 8 News Now he feared for his life. He is not facing charges at this time. The Clark County District Attorney’s office is expected to review the case.
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