Two US boys to stand trial for murder conspiracy

Colville: A northeast Washington state judge has found two boys, ages 10 and 11, competent to stand trial in juvenile court on a murder conspiracy charge.

Stevens County Prosecutor Tim Rasmussen says the fifth-graders had a handwritten plan listing seven steps leading up to the planned killing of a female classmate. That list was yesterday submitted as evidence at their mental capacity hearing. A county judge ruled that the boys understood the nature and consequences of their actions. They pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit murder, witness tampering and juvenile possession of a firearm. The boys were arrested February 7 at Fort Colville Elementary School after a fourth-grader saw one playing with a knife on a schoolbus and told a school employee. A backpack search also turned up a .45-calibre semi-automatic pistol and ammunition. The Spokesman Review reports the boys are being held on a USD 100,000 bond each. Both a defence psychiatrist and a state psychologist say they present a danger to the community. PTI