BY CINDY SCHROEDER
The Cincinnati Enquirer
NEWPORT -- Two Newport teen-agers, including one described by his mentor as "absolutely the last person" one would expect to be involved in a serious crime, were indicted Thursday on murder and first-degree robbery charges.
Darnell Walker and Anthony Daniels, both 15, remain in the Mason County Juvenile Detention Center, pending their Oct. 14 arraignment before Campbell Circuit Judge William Wehr.
Darnell had previously been in the Mason detention center on rape and weapons charges, according to court records. Anthony had no prior record.
The two teens are charged in the June 25 shooting of Charles Johnson Jr. Mr. Johnson, 59, of Newport, was shot in the back with a .22 caliber revolver after an apparent robbery attempt near the corner of Third and Monmouth streets just three blocks from his home, police said. A half hour after the shooting, he was dead in University Hospital's emergency room.
Even though one boy is accused of pulling the trigger, the other was involved in the crime, and he knew what the other teen planned to do, authorities have said.
In a closed-door juvenile court hearing on Aug. 12, Campbell District Judge Karen Thomas referred the boys' cases to a grand jury, and ordered that both continue to be held in detention.
Before that hearing, Newport resident Jim Guthrie wrote a letter to the judge, expressing faith in the boys whom he had met through the Big Brothers - Big Sisters program.
As his first little brother, Darnell impressed his mentor with his leadership skills and maturity, Mr. Guthrie wrote. However, by age 10, Darnell was often in trouble, and "was in tremendous need of guidance and structure in his life," his mentor wrote. "At 10, he was the man of his dysfunctional family," Mr. Guthrie wrote. "I was struck by his leadership skills and how kids in the neighborhood looked up to him and how he looked after them; his maturity. My goal as his mentor was to channel those skills in a positive direction." In his letter, Mr. Guthrie described Anthony as his "adopted" little brother, who often accompanied Mr. Guthrie, Darnell, and Darnell's younger brother, on outings.
"I was shocked to learn of Anthony's alleged involvement in this crime," Mr. Guthrie wrote of the boy whom Judge Thomas described as "a danger to (the) community" in her juvenile court order. "He was absolutely the last person that I would have expected. I never felt the need to mentor him much. He seemed sure of himself and above the fray and mischief surrounding him."
Kentucky youths convicted of murder and robbery in an adult court face a maximum sentence of life in prison. Those under 18 would be sentenced to a juvenile facility until their 18th birthday, when they would be transferred to an adult prison.
