WILMINGTON, Del. — A judge is weighing whether or not to try a teen as an adult for her connection to the April 21 death of 16-year-old Amy Joyner-Francis.
After a fight involving Joyner-Francis and the three accused teens in a bathroom at Howard High School in Wilmington, Delaware, Joyner-Francis fell unconscious and later died.
In a May 9th statement from the Delaware Department of Justice, all three of the accused are minors.
The teenage girls were charged May 9 in connection with her death.
One teen, aged 16, is facing a charge of criminally negligent homicide. It is punishable by up to eight years in prison.
The other two teens have been charged with criminal conspiracy, and will be tried as juveniles. Third-degree criminal conspiracy is punishable by up to one year in prison.
The Associated Press reported that cellphone video of the fight was shown in family court Monday, as a hearing was held to determine if the 16 year old will be tried as an adult.
Deputy attorney general Theresa Sedivec said the girl indicated someone else delivered the blow that led to Joyner-Francis' death. According to Sedivec, after finding out about the victim's death, the girl said, "Somebody else must have kicked her. ... Well they're not going to put this on me."
In court, psychologist Robin Belcher-Timme said the 16 year old has respnded well to counseling and that her behvior was correctible.
The Medical Examiner determined that Joyner-Francis died from a cardiac incident related to a pre-existing heart condition; however, the cardiac incident was triggered by the assault.
According to Delaware Online, court documents indicate that the three teens planned the bathroom assault almost one day in advance. The assault was captured on video, and authorities say it appears the 16 year old teen girl hit Joyner-Francis with a closed fist after the three girls followed Joyner-Francis into the bathroom.
3 Teens Charged In Death Of Delaware High School Student Amy Joyner-Francis https://t.co/WsYRVFjKId pic.twitter.com/iVlYdDo8rr
— DiscoveryID (@DiscoveryID) May 10, 2016
A previous version of this story included the names of the teen girls facing charges. The names have been removed as they are juveniles.
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