A boy who killed his neo-Nazi dad could testify on his own behalf sometime this week. Joseph Hall, 12, shot and killed his dad when he was just 10-years-old using his father's gun. On Jan. 8, Yahoo! News reported that the prosecution has rested its case and closing arguments will proceed on Wed. if Hall does not choose to testify.
"Since Hall is a minor, the purpose of the trial is not to determine guilt or innocence but whether certain allegations about his motives are true. If he is found responsible for the crime, he could be sent to a juvenile facility until he is 23," Yahoo! News reports.
The boy who killed his neo-Nazi dad reportedly suffered from "conduct disorder." A psychologist testified on behalf of the defense and stated that "Hall had been conditioned to violence by years of physical, emotional, and likely sexual abuse." The defense claimed that the young boy was "conditioned by his father's violent, racist behavior and that he killed him to put an end to the physical abuse inflicted on him."
The prosecution offered their rebuttal, stating that the boy killed his father after learning that he had plans to divorce his step-mother. Joseph Hall considered his dad's wife his real mother. The issue of abandonment has come up several times in this case and it seems clear that the young boy felt alone, scared, and unsafe in many ways. Do you think he should serve time in a juvenile facility?
The boy who killed his neo-Nazi dad could find out his fate by the end of the week.
© Effie Orfanides 2013
Comments