The Miami Herald reports on the latest developments in the Dillard High Shooting case.
Teah Wimberly, the Broward teenager accused of shooting her friend to death at Dillard High School, will undergo more psychological testing before a judge decides whether she should be moved from jail to a mental institution.
Prosecutors and Wimberly's lawyer jointly agreed further testing was needed, canceling a Friday hearing, according to Judge John Murphy III's office.
Wimberly, 15, has been an inmate at the North Broward Jail in Pompano Beach since November. She is segregated from the other female prisoners because of her age.
Before the decision to postpone the hearing, the two sides had been expected to put several psychology experts and therapists on the witness stand Friday to prove their point in court.
Since the terrible shooting, some family background has come out that is being offered now as proof of Wimberley's diminished capacity.
Abandoned as a baby by her mother, she grew extremely attached to her father, Jevon Wimberly, known on stage as ''J Baby,'' who was an up-and-coming comedian in the Miami area. In 2007 he himself shot another man in a dispuite, was convicted of second-degree attempted murder and sentenced to 25 years. Leaving Teah in the care of his parents, he refused to allow her to visit him in jail.
Now that's enough to throw anyone's life off the rails, but is it enough to excuse her actions? Is it enough to mitigate them? Combined with her age, do you think this girl should be held accountable for this murder the same way as say, the Florida Turnpike killers are?
The last time we talked about this case, at the time of Teah's non-guilty plea, we received a comment from a classmate at Dillard High named Lucille.
teah's intention was not to kill amanda, her intention was to kill herself in front of amanda but at the last second she turned the gun. amanda was not gay. they were never dating. i'm fully convinced teah has some problems. she would blog about the how sweet death was and how the darkness soothes her. her mother kicked her out of the house and she had to live with her grandmother. none of this is a reason to kill someone, and i believe teah should not get off easy, but there are some things to be discussed here. if there was no gun available, i'm not sure this would have happened...
Young Lucille is certainly no expert, and I've never claimed to be one, but interestingly we both say the same thing. If there had been no gun available, this incident might not have happened, at least it might not have had such devestating results.What's your opinion? Can you see how the availability of the gun is often crucial? Do you think Teah should be considered for leniency because of her age and background?
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