Michigan Criminal Lawyers Blog
On Wednesday February 20, a man was found stabbed to death in an Oak Park Village apartment on Lansing’s southside. He was identified by Lansing police as 47-year-old Timothy Taylor. Police responded to the scene at approximately 2 a.m. following reports of a fight.
The death was being investigated as a homicide, although police initially had no suspects. Nearly one week later, public information officer Robert Merritt of the Lansing police announced that two persons of interest had been identified. The names of the suspects were not released due to the fact they are juveniles. Officials did say however that the juveniles are not from Lansing, according to a news report at the Lansing State Journal. As of February 26 the two juvenile suspects had not been arrested or charged, and Merritt declined to give a reason. He said only that, “I’m confident that we have the two players involved.”
Stuart Dunnings, Ingham County Prosecutor, stated that there was a personal relationship between his family and some of the individuals involved in the case; due to a conflict of interest, police said that Eaton County Prosecutor Jeff Sauter would handle the case.
Michigan juvenile crime attorneys understand that even individuals who are considered juveniles may face serious criminal penalties if convicted of a felony offense. In some instances, a juvenile charged with a particularly violent or serious crime may result in that individual being sentenced as an adult. Even though in most cases adolescents are tried in juvenile court and not labeled as criminals, prosecutors often attempt have individuals arrested for some crimes tried in adult court, which means harsher penalties.
While this is certainly a serious crime, juveniles make mistakes and are often influenced by their peers, not realizing the serious implications on their lives and futures. Immaturity may also play a role; teens are not fully developed either physically or mentally, and do things without giving thought to the consequences. If you or your juvenile child has been arrested for a criminal offense no matter how minor or serious it may seem, do not hesitate before contacting a skilled and aggressive Michigan criminal defense lawyer.