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WEST JORDAN, Utah (AP) — The court case for a 14-year-old Utah boy accused of shooting another teen twice in the head outside a middle school will remain open to the public and media after attorneys reached an agreement Thursday.
Defense attorney Christine Seaman said she doesn't want to make enemies with the media. She and a fellow attorney came to a resolution with media lawyer Austin Riter at a West Jordan court.
"We feel like we have a strong defense to present," Seaman said.
She declined to elaborate outside court, but said people will realize this was "a horrible situation and a tragedy."
Juvenile Judge Tupakk Renteria said he'll consider requests by defense attorneys to close certain parts of hearings or court filings. His initial appearance is set for Dec. 1.
The teen is facing attempted murder and weapons charges in the Oct. 25 incident. He is accused of shooting a 16-year-old behind Union Middle School in the Salt Lake City suburb of Sandy as school got out.
The victim survived. Prosecutors want to move the case to adult court.
The Associated Press is not naming the boy because it does not normally name juvenile defendants.
Riter said it was the right move to keep the proceedings open since Utah law makes cases for juveniles 14 and older presumptively open unless attorneys show something highly sensitive that would be damaging to the youth.
He represents a group of outlets including the Deseret News, KSL-TV, Salt Lake Tribune, Fox 13, ABC 4 and KUTV 2 as well as the Utah Headliners Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.
Seaman and fellow attorney Sophia Moore previously argued in court documents that the teen's family and academic history and his psychological state shouldn't be discussed in public and weren't relevant to the accusations. They worried he would struggle to get a fair trial if the media covered the hearings.
The two teenagers had a longstanding conflict and the teen told his adversary at one point he would reunite him with his deceased mother, prosecutors said in charging documents.
Authorities say the handgun was his mother's that he took from a closet.
After firing the shots, the shooter fell to his knees and a teacher grabbed the gun out of his hand, prosecutors said. When police arrived and officers asked who the shooter was he said, "I am," prosecutors said.
The defendant is an eighth-grader at Union Middle and the victim is a junior at nearby Hillcrest High School, officials have said.
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