“The culprit killed this woman and may get the benefit of a plea bargain or a reduced sentence...”
Unless he is certified as an adult, which might not be legally possible because of his age, he’ll be tried in a juvenile court for ‘delinquency’. The trial will be held in secret and the outcome never announced. The surviving daughter and the public will not be allowed to know what became of her mother’s murderer.
Philosophically, the juvenile justice system does not exist to punish young offenders but rather to try and ‘fix’ them into becoming good people.
The juvenile judge will sentence him to whatever the judge feels will serve the juvenile’s best interests. He could be sent to a group home, a ‘youth center’ (much more confining) or even sent home to his parent(s). While the judge may no doubt take the severity of the crime involved in meting out the sentence, he or she doesn’t have to.
I appreciate your detailed information.
Reading it shows again the victim is the underdog, the one with no rights and with no true justice.