INDIANAPOLIS – An Indiana boy convicted in adult court at age 12 in the killing of a friend's stepfather will get a second chance to be tried in juvenile court.
A Kosciusko (kahs-ee-AHS'-koh) County court judge sentenced Paul Henry Gingerich in 2010 to 25 years in prison, concluding he and two other boys conspired to fatally shoot 49-year-old Phillip Danner.
In December, the Indiana Court of Appeals threw out Gingerich's guilty plea, saying the lower court judge rushed when he waived the case to adult court. It ordered a new hearing to determine if Gingerich, now 15, should be tried as a juvenile.
The attorney general's office appealed to the Supreme Court, which on Thursday upheld the appellate court's decision.
Attorneys on both sides did not immediately return messages seeking comment Friday.
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