Teen enters plea in fatal shooting of his sister

Tuesday, May 11, 2004 | 11:19 a.m.

A 15-year-old boy who said he accidentally shot his sister while playing with a relative's gun pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in Juvenile Justice Court on Monday and was released into his family's custody.

Juvenile Hearing Master Stephen Compan said he made his decision to release Rocky Mendoza into a strict type of house arrest because an initial assessment found him to be "low risk" and because he and his family had already begun counseling.

Mendoza will wear an electronic monitor and can attend school, church and counseling. Compan stressed that Mendoza would not be allowed to attend any social functions.

Mendoza is slated to appear for sentencing before Juvenile Court Judge William Voy on June 8, just seven days after Jake Reeder, another 15-year-old boy, is to be sentenced by Voy for the accidental shooting of his friend.

Initially Compan was going to schedule Mendoza and Reeder on the same day, but he decided doing so might generate too much emotion.

Compan did not release Reeder, who pleaded guilty on May 5 to involuntary manslaughter in the accidental killing of his 14-year-old friend Dustin Osborne. Compan said that although both incidents involved minors using a gun to accidentally kill someone, the boys in question had different histories and home lives.

"In the last week this court has dealt with two similar cases," Compan said. "In Reeder's case a child was killed in the act of playing, but he was high (on marijuana) and there was nothing to indicate this happened with Mr. Mendoza. The family support there (with Reeder) was negative, here (with Mendoza) it's positive. There were guns regularly found in the Reeder home and that's not the case here (with Mendoza). The family has cooperated with authorities and has begun the healing process as the entire family is in counseling."

Mendoza was originally charged with murder as a result of the accidental shooting of his 14-year-old sister, Erica, in late March. He was arrested on April 30.

During Monday's hearing, Mendoza said he found the gun of a relative on March 29 and shot his sister in the head. The gun had been legally purchased earlier that same day. Metro Police said the shooting was accidental.

Mendoza explained to Compan that he arrived at his family's apartment just after his brother-in-law had purchased a gun. He said his brother-in-law showed the gun around, but the clip was out. After going to the bathroom, Mendoza returned to find his sister pointing the gun at him, saying she wanted to play "soap opera."

He said he told her to put the gun down, but she laughed and said, "Why are you tripping if it's not loaded?"

Mendoza then grabbed the gun and said his sister continued to play.

Mendoza said he then told her to be quiet pointing the gun in her direction, but not directly at her. As he lowered the gun he pulled the trigger.

"I didn't mean to, but I did and she fell to the ground," Mendoza said.

He agreed in Las Vegas Justice Court on May 5 to plead guilty to a charge of involuntary manslaughter in exchange for moving the case to Juvenile Court, but Public Defender Phil Kohn said he was not yet ready to have the boy enter the plea during a hearing before Compan on May 6.

Compan had previously refused Reeder's release, opting to send him to juvenile detention center because of questions surrounding Reeder's state of mind and his home life. Compan ordered Reeder to undergo a psychological assessment, an in-depth drug use history test and a gun-risk assessment prior to his sentencing.

Mendoza will also undergo a full psychological assessment before his sentencing.

Mendoza and Reeder were charged initially with murder under a state law that says an unintentional killing that occurs while other crimes are being committed may be charged as murder.

Mendoza and Reeder could face punishment ranging from formal probation to incarceration in a juvenile detention center.