Boy’s Charges Reduced in Baby’s Beating

The attempted murder charge against a 6-year-old accused of beating a month-old infant nearly to death was reduced Thursday to a charge of assault with intent to injure, the boy’s defense attorney said.

Contra County prosecutor Harold Jewett filed a petition with the court Thursday that also reduced a burglary charge to trespassing, defense lawyer John Burris said. The lesser charges each require less proof of specific intent, he said.

The move came on the eve of a scheduled appearance by the 6-year-old in Contra Costa County Juvenile Court in Martinez. The court is expected to hear a report today by two psychiatrists on the boy’s mental state and whether he is competent to stand trial.

The psychiatrists’ report “concurs with the view that I have that the boy does not have the maturity that would let him understand the consequences of his acts, regardless of the charges,” said Burris.

He declined to discuss details of the report, saying it should first be heard in court. Jewett did not return phone calls to his office Thursday.

Burris said he did not consider the lesser charges a major victory “because I think that no charges should be filed here.” He said he will press the court today to “take the case out of the criminal justice system and move it to the social services system.” He said that his client needs counseling and supervision, not incarceration.

The 6-year-old originally was charged along with two friends, 8-year-old twins, in connection with the brutal beating of Ignacio Bermudez, their neighbor. The three boys allegedly broke into the Bermudez’s apartment in the Iron Triangle neighborhood of Richmond on April 22, when the infant was in the care of a 18-year-old stepsister.

The 6-year-old was accused of snatching the baby from his bassinet and pummeling him with his fists and a stick. Bermudez suffered severe, permanent brain damage. Each of the twins was charged with burglary, for allegedly helping the 6-year-old steal a tricycle from the apartment.

A decision in the case against the 8-year-olds was postponed until October after their mother died. They spent a week in juvenile hall after their arrest and are now in the care of relatives.

The 6-year-old has remained in juvenile hall in Martinez since his arrest days after the attack. He is the youngest child in the facility.

He was believed to have been the youngest person ever charged in the United States with attempted murder. The criminal justice system generally assumes that anyone under 12 is not capable of understanding the consequences of his acts, and it is rare for anyone under that age to be prosecuted for crimes.

Prosecutor Jewett has contended that the boy’s taped confession to Richmond police demonstrates an understanding of right and wrong.

Bermudez recently was released from Children’s Hospital in Oakland, where he spent more than three weeks in intensive care. He and his family have moved out of the Iron Triangle neighborhood but still live in Richmond.

Ignacio Bermudez, the infant’s father, told a TV station Thursday that he was pleased the charges had been reduced.

“What that boy needs now is love and a lot of attention,” said the elder Bermudez, speaking through an interpreter.