Oakland teen accused of killing sister will remain in custody

A 14-year-old Oakland boy charged with fatally shooting his 17-year-old sister after quarreling with her over laundry was ordered Monday to remain in custody for the protection of others, a commissioner ruled.

The boy confirmed his name and age to Commissioner Mark Kliszewski at a hearing at the Juvenile Justice Center in San Leandro, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Prosecutors have charged the boy with murder and three weapons allegations, all felonies, in the slaying of Justice Toliver. The girl was shot in the chest with a handgun in an apartment in Oakland’s Chinatown on Jan. 23, authorities said.

Family members said the siblings had been feuding, including over the boy’s belief that his sister had bleached his clothes.

The boy’s attorney, Adanté Pointer, asked the commissioner to release his client to his family and to place him under electronic monitoring, noting the boy had no previous contact with law enforcement.

But Senior Deputy Dist. Atty. Angela Backers called the boy a danger to the community and a flight risk. He fled the scene before surrendering to police six days later.

Addressing the boy’s family members in the gallery, Kliszewski said he was sympathetic to them for “the daughter you lost and the son you have” but declined to release him.

The commissioner pointed out that he didn’t know how the boy allegedly got the handgun used to kill his sister.

Kliszewski agreed to allow the boy to call his father but not to place a second call to his 4-month-old daughter, saying, “I’m sorry, but a 4-month-old wouldn’t have a good conversation.”