Court upholds detention for teen who killed another boy, even at low risk

A judge can send a teenager into detention because of how serious the crime was, even when a psychologist says the kid is unlikely to hurt anyone again. The Alaska Court of Appeals ruled that Friday, upholding the detention of a boy who stabbed and killed another teenager at a Wasilla movie theater.

The boy, identified as R.M., was 14 when he stabbed L.S. during a fistfight in April 2024. L.S. died that night. R.M. admitted to manslaughter, and the state dropped a murder charge. A Palmer judge committed him to state custody for up to two years, and the appeals court affirmed it.

R.M.'s attorney argued he should get probation and treatment at home. He was low risk, the defense said, and a psychologist testified that locking him up could actually make him more likely to reoffend. The boy had no prior record and had spent 10 months out on release without trouble.

The judge weighed all that and still ordered detention. Taking a life, the court found, is the most serious thing a juvenile can do. R.M. had carried a folding knife with a three-inch blade to the theater and used it when no one else in the fight had a weapon. He had been suspended two weeks earlier for another fight, and both times he turned to violence instead of getting an adult. The judge also found he hadn't fully owned what he did. He told police he was defending a friend against four attackers, but a cellphone video of the fight contradicted that.

The heart of the legal question was what judges are allowed to consider. The appeals court said the law tells them to weigh "the interests of the public," and that means more than just whether a kid is dangerous. It can include holding a young person accountable for what they did. Rehabilitation still matters, the court said, but it isn't the only goal.

L.S.'s family and the parents of other children at the theater submitted statements describing their grief. The state can release R.M. before the two years are up, and his case gets reviewed at least once a year.