Boy, 11, to Stand Trial as Adult in Michigan Slaying

An 11-year-old boy was ordered Friday to stand trial as an adult on murder charges in the sniper-slaying of a man outside a convenience store.

Sixth-grader Nathaniel Jamal Abraham would become the youngest person ever to be tried as an adult for murder in Michigan. He could get life in prison.

Probate Judge Sandra Silver ruled that there is enough evidence for him to stand trial. The decision of whether he would be tried as an adult rested entirely with prosecutors.

The boy’s mother said the move is unfair.

“He needs to be placed in a facility to get help,” Gloria Abraham said. “He has needs that need to be met to get him back on the right track, to get better self-esteem for himself.”

If the boy is convicted, the judge has the right to sentence him either as an adult, which would mean an automatic life sentence, or as a juvenile, which could mean no time at all behind bars.

The boy is accused of killing 18-year-old Ronnie L. Green Jr. on Oct. 29. Three hours earlier, the boy shot at a neighbor and narrowly missed, police said.

Prosecutors said Nathaniel may have shot Green because he was afraid gang members were out to get him.