Superior Court to Hear 11-year-old's Appeal

The Pennsylvania Law Weekly reported that the Superior Court will hear the appeal of a decision to try 12-year-old Jordan Brown as an adult in the shooting death of his father's pregnant fiancee.

The state Superior Court on Tuesday granted a defense request to review the decision by Lawrence County Judge Dominick Motto.

Prosecutors allege that Brown, who was 11-years-old at the time,shot 26-year-old Kenzie Houk with a 20-gauge shotgun as she slept in their New Beaver farmhouse in February 2009. Her unborn son, who was nearly full-term, also died.

Motto said in March that Brown was unlikely to be rehabilitated in the juvenile system. Conviction as an adult on a first- or second-degree murder charge would mean a mandatory life sentence without parole. If the case is moved to juvenile court, the state could not hold him beyond his 21st birthday.