A judge has ordered Baltimore County's juvenile justice department to evaluate whether the Cockeysville teenager accused of killing his parents and two younger brothers should be tried in the juvenile system or remain in adult court.
The assessment was requested by a defense attorney for Nicholas W. Browning, 16, who is charged with four counts of first-degree murder and four handgun offenses in the Feb. 2 deaths.
The fatal shootings occurred a week before the defendant's 16th birthday. Had Browning been 16 at the time of the killings, the case could not be considered for a transfer to juvenile court.
In his legal filing, defense attorney Joshua R. Treem said "such a transfer is in the best interest of the child and society."
Juvenile service workers will prepare a report that includes information about Browning, his family, his environment and "other matters relevant to the disposition of the case," according to the order signed Tuesday by Baltimore County Circuit Judge John G. Turnbull II.
Such evaluations usually summarize any prior arrests involving the teenager as well as his family and school history. After that, a hearing will be held.
Treem, the defense attorney, did not return a phone message yesterday.
Prosecutor Leo Ryan Jr. declined to comment on the request.
Such a transfer would drastically change the way the case is handled and what punishments Browning could face, if convicted.
The juvenile court system is much more focused on treatment and finding programs to help young people correct whatever behavior landed them in trouble, lawyers say. As such, punishments handed out by juvenile judges - or masters, as they are called - can range from community service and indefinite periods of probation to confinement in a juvenile facility.
Any sentence imposed in juvenile court, however, cannot extend beyond a defendant's 21st birthday.
By comparison, if Browning is tried in adult court, he would likely face a sentence of up to life in prison without the possibility of parole. In deciding where the case should be tried, Baltimore County Circuit Judge Thomas J. Bollinger must, according to state law, consider Browning's age; his mental and physical condition; his amenability to treatment in an institution, facility or program available to delinquent children; the nature of the alleged crime; and public safety.
Browning, a Dulaney High School sophomore, is accused of fatally shooting his parents, John W. Browning and Tamara Browning, and his brothers, Gregory, 14, and Benjamin, 11, as they slept in their Cockeysville home.
jennifer.mcmenamin @baltsun.com
