13-Year-Old Girl Charged With Murder in Stabbing Death of 7-Year-Old Sister

A 13-year-old girl in Michigan was charged with murder this week in the fatal stabbing of her own 7-year-old sister.
On Tuesday, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s office in Michigan announced the charges against the 13-year-old girl following the stabbing incident in their home near Detroit. In a statement, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s office did not release the identity of the 13-year-old girl but noted that she is being charged as a juvenile. The prosecutor’s office also announced that the teenage girl is being charged with premeditated murder.
The two siblings reportedly began arguing after being left alone at their home in Taylor, Michigan, at around 11:15 a.m. local time on Saturday. According to authorities, the 7-year-old later went into the bathroom, where she was stabbed multiple times with a knife.
The 13-year-old reportedly called authorities immediately after the incident. The 7-year-old sister later died at the hospital after law enforcement officials responded to the home. The older girl is also facing charges of felony murder and first-degree child abuse.
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy stated that while there was consideration of designating the 13-year-old as an adult, it is not the same as pursuing a criminal trial against her in adult court.
According to Worthy, designating the 13-year-old as an adult “gives the judge the option of sentencing the respondent as a juvenile, or as an adult or giving a blended juvenile sentence with an option of imposing an adult sentence if the juvenile is not rehabilitated.”
However, Worthy noted that “our other option was to keep her in the juvenile system. We opted to do just that.”
“Given her young age, the state would have seven years to diagnose, treat and rehabilitate her until her mandatory release at age 21,” Worthy said. “Hopefully, then she would not be a danger to others.”
During a preliminary hearing on Tuesday in juvenile court, the girl was ordered to remain in custody.
News of the 13-year-old girl being charged with murder comes as a 15-year-old boy was arrested in Iowa following the fatal shooting of a mail carrier in Chicago.
The Chicago Police Department said in a news release on Tuesday that Chicago officers, along with U.S. marshals, arrested the 15-year old boy on Monday in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on a murder warrant. He was then extradited to Chicago, where he faces charges as a juvenile.
“The 15-year-old was taken into custody on Monday, September 30, 2024 by members of the Chicago Police Department and the U.S. Marshals Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force,” the Chicago Police Department’s statement said.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.