Closing Arguments Presented In Trial Of Boy Who Admitted To Killing Neo-Nazi Father
RIVERSIDE (CBSLA.com) — Closing arguments were presented Wednesday morning in the trial of a 12-year-old boy who admitted to killing his neo-Nazi father as he slept.
Jeffrey Hall, 32, was shot to death inside his Riverside home in May 2011.
Hall's son was 10 years old at the time of the murder and has confessed to the crime on videotape.
Closing arguments were made to a judge in a Riverside County courtroom.
The defense rested its case Tuesday without calling the child to testify. Lawyers say he suffered from abuse and didn't know what he did was wrong.
"I think that there's a strong argument that this young man should not be held morally or legally responsible for what he did," defense attorney Matt Hardy said.
Hardy said the boy was physically and mentally abused at home and was amorally violent.
"We, as a society, for the first 10 years of his life didn't do a damn thing to protect him. DPSS (Department of Public Social Services) was to his house, I don't know, 10, 20 times, didn't do a thing to protect him," Hardy said.
Prosecutors portrayed the boy as a smart and violent child, who fully understood what he was doing. They said he even told his sister that he was going to kill their father.
If convicted, the boy could face a maximum of 13 years in juvenile detention.
A decision is expected by Monday.
