Carjacking Suspect to Be Tried as Juvenile

A 16-year-old Oxnard girl accused of assaulting a retired teacher with pepper spray and stealing her car will be tried in Juvenile Court on carjacking charges.

Prosecutors had sought to have the girl tried as an adult on charges of carjacking, use of pepper spray, robbery, taking of a vehicle and hit-and-run.

But Judge Charles McGrath found that the girl’s case was more suited for Juvenile Court, where arraignment is scheduled for Friday.

A 15-year-old Oxnard girl was sentenced last week for her role in the same carjacking, after pleading guilty to charges of carjacking, use of a knife and hit-and-run. She was sentenced to four months in Colston Youth Center, with weekend furlough privileges, and two months of wearing an electronic tracking device while living at home.

Police said the two girls accosted Gertrude Cash, a retired biology teacher, in the parking lot of Vons in Oxnard on June 17. The 15-year-old pulled a knife and demanded Cash’s car keys, and when Cash did not respond quickly enough, the 16-year-old squirted her with pepper spray, police said.

Police said the pair grabbed Cash’s keys and drove to Ventura. There they hit another car, and its driver drove after them and forced them to stop, police said. He and another man chased the girls on foot and detained them.