A judge has ordered a Clearfield teenager to be tried as an adult in the January shooting death of 15-year-old Jennifer Dawn Sawyer.
The 15-year-old defendant, Daniel Roberts, broke into tears Thursday after 2nd District Juvenile Judge L. Kent Bachman announced his ruling.The judge allowed Roberts to stay at the MOWEDA Youth Home in Roy until formal charges are filed. At that time, Roberts will be transferred to the Davis County Jail.
Prosecutors say Roberts shot Sawyer, a North Davis Junior High School eighth-grader, early Jan. 23 after they and other youths purportedly broke into an empty trailer home in Clearfield.
The group was allegedly drinking, and Roberts is accused of waiving around a stolen .357-caliber Magnum handgun and pulling the trigger several times until it went off, killing Sawyer.
Defense attorney Glen Cella said his client believed the gun was empty.
But County Attorney Mel Wilson has said investigation of the shooting indicates the boy may have been aware the weapon was loaded.
The other teenagers believed involved in the case have been referred to juvenile court.
In announcing his ruling, Bachman noted Roberts had an extensive juvenile record including more than 20 incidents since 1987.