Campbell County school resumes, teen’s hearing delayed:
Suspect Ken Bartley Jr., 14, remained held without bond in a detention center in Knoxville, some 34 miles south, as court officials searched for a judge to hear a prosecutor’s petition to move Bartley’s case into adult court.
Judges Joseph Ayers of Campbell County and Patricia Hess of Anderson County recused themselves because they know the victims. Judge Michael Davis of Morgan County agreed late Monday to preside over the juvenile court hearing.
And according to the article, authorities are still not discussing a motive even though I’ve had several people who claim to be from the Campbell County area say that Ken Bartley allegedly brought the gun to school to sell for drugs. Why he would bring a loaded gun is beyond me if he was just going to sell it.
Anyway, the article also states that Bartley is ineligible for the death penalty under Tennessee state law because he is under 16. I’m on the fence on whether or not he would deserve the death penalty. I’m leaning towards no, since conventional wisdom is leaning towards the fact that this wasn’t premeditated.
However, it remains to be seen if the “gun for drugs” motive is the actual motive or not.
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