The first-degree murder charge is one the most serious in all of American criminal justice but when a juvenile is involved the water becomes even murkier. One of the early decisions to be made will be to try Danielson as an adult or a juvenile and Aaron Thompson, who defended convicted murderer Torey Adamcik, says those two justice systems have very different aims.
“The juvenile system is based more on rehabilitation,” said Thompson. “When someone reaches the age of 18 and they have an objective understanding of the ramifications of a bad act, then there are other things that come into play such as punishment for punishment's sake and protection of society.”
And Thompson says the decision will come down to just a handful of people.
“It's up to the prosecutor as to whether they want to pursue that and then it is up to the juvenile court to make a determination whether it is appropriate in this case,” Thompson said.
The courts will use the Juvenile Corrections Act as their guidebook for moving forward in the case and Chief Deputy Prosecutor Vic Pearson says there are a number of criteria to consider.
“We have to determine what's in the best interest of the community and the citizens of Bannock County,” Pearson said. “We need to look at the suspect we are talking about waiving into adult court to make that determination.”
The most recent case of a juvenile accused of murder was the 2006 murder of Cassie Jo Stoddart but Pearson says that is where the similarities end.
“This individual's 12-years-old and there's a big, significant difference between a 12-year-old and a 16-year-old,” said Pearson. “I obviously can't go into the facts of this particular case but it’s hard to draw a comparison between this and the Cassie Jo Stoddart case, it's apples and oranges.”
If found guilty according to Idaho Statute 20-520 Danielson could be in state custody “for an indeterminate period of time not to exceed the juvenile's nineteenth birthday, unless the custody review board determines that extended time in custody is necessary to address competency development, accountability, and community protection; provided however, that no juvenile shall remain in the custody of the department beyond the juvenile's twenty-first birthday.”
Danielson's mother and ex-wife of the victim has been reached in Canada and should be in Bannock County sometime Wednesday.
