Boy Shot at Grandmother, Prosecutors in Case Allege

Prosecutors charged Wednesday that an 11-year-old boy fired a 9-millimeter semiautomatic handgun at his grandmother in her La Canada Flintridge home as the elderly woman, bleeding from stab wounds, was calling 911 to summon police.

The allegation was the clearest sign to date that prosecutors believe the boy, along with his mother, played a direct role in last Sunday’s killing. The minor entered a plea of not guilty to a charge of murder and use of a deadly weapon at his arraignment in Juvenile Court in Pasadena. If convicted, he could be sent to a California Youth Authority facility until age 25.

The boy and his mother, Victoria Elizabeth Jacobs Madeira, 43, of Anaheim, were arrested outside the house Sunday by police responding to the call. Police said they found four guns at the scene, and murder charges were filed against Madeira on Tuesday.

At the boy’s arraignment, Juvenile Court Judge Sandy R. Kriegler also said he would appoint a psychiatrist to assess the minor’s mental stability. Madeira, the boy’s mother and co-defendant in the murder case, has a history of paranoid schizophrenia, according to family members. They blame the crime on her illness.

Roma Jaul Jacobs, a 78-year-old homemaker, was shot several times in her La Canada Flintridge home Sunday evening. She had already been stabbed numerous times, and police said they could hear the fatal shots over the phone.

When deputies arrived a few minutes later, Jacobs was found dead in her kitchen. Arrested in the yard were Madeira, clad in army fatigues, and her son, wearing girl’s clothes, a wig, makeup and gold earrings, according to witnesses and authorities.

While Los Angeles Deputy Dist. Atty. Thomas R. Krag refused to discuss any other details of the slaying, he said the minor “was involved in the case, he was acting with his mother--so that’s the main factor we’re looking at.”

As evidence of the boy’s complicity, Krag also pointed to his “disguise,” allegedly intended to aid in an escape.

At his arraignment, the boy wore a gray sweatshirt, slacks and black sneakers. He appeared in good spirits, if a bit bewildered during the brief proceeding, his attorney said.

Asked by Kriegler to give his most recent phone number in Anaheim, where he lived with his mother, the boy said: “I’m not sophisticated with that. I only got there a month ago.”

Family members who had been deluged with press inquiries since the slaying hired a consultant to deal with media calls while they prepared funeral arrangements.