A baby-faced Oklahoma teenager who is just 4 feet, 9 inches tall has been sentenced to more than 50 years in prison as an adult for shooting a 5-year-old girl in the neck as part of a shocking gang initiation.
Noah Ney, 16, was convicted of all 10 charges against him — including shooting with intent to kill, possession of a firearm and drug possession — in connection with an April 2022 drive-by shooting in Tulsa, NewsOn6 reported.
He was riding in a stolen SUV when he opened fire, hitting the 5-year-old girl in the neck and shoulder as she played outside, prosecutors said.
The young victim thankfully survived after being rushed to a local hospital – but prosecutors said he would have died if the bullet had hit just an inch away.
The court heard that the shooting was Ney’s initiation into Tulsa’s Hoover Crips gang, according to the Daily Mail.
“A neighbor testified Noah caused chaos in the neighborhood by wearing gang colors and carrying a gun and knife, and often drew them toward neighbors while threatening them,” Assistant Tulsa County District Attorney Morgan Medders told the court.
After his arrest, the pint-sized gunman — who looked younger than 16 in his mugshot and weighed just 90 pounds, records show — escaped from his Tulsa juvenile detention center in August by jumping a fence while a guard was distracted.
Noah Ney, 16, has been sentenced to more than 50 years in prison for shooting a 5-year-old girl in the neck last year. Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office
He was assumed to be armed during his escape and was re-arrested at gunpoint four days later.
During Ney’s sentencing Monday, prosecutors detailed the teenager’s criminal history, which they said included robbery, gun charges and drug-related offenses.
Ney fired shots from a stolen SUV in Tulsa, Oklahoma, at the child, as part of a gang initiation, prosecutors said. Newson6
Prosecutors said that while at the juvenile detention center, Ney repeatedly assaulted staff, flooded his cell and smeared feces on the walls.
In arguing for a lengthy sentence for Ney, prosecutors insisted the 16-year-old was dangerous and should be off the streets.
Ney was captured by law enforcement four days after he fled, as seen on body camera video. Newson6
Ney’s defense attorney countered by claiming that his parents were to blame for his behavior and that he had been denied treatment options.
His aunt testified that her nephew had been neglected all his life by his parents, who had been in and out of prison.
Prosecutors insisted that it was no excuse for the danger posed by the small gangbang.
Prosecutors said the baby-faced gunman had an extensive criminal history, including robbery and drug-related offences. Newson6
“I have treatment records in a packet thicker than a dictionary showing treatment attempts that he rejected, by running away or attacking staff who were there to help him get treatment,” Medders said.
Ney will be eligible for a judicial review hearing in five years, when his sentence could be reduced if he can convince the judge that he has changed for the better, the court was told.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
