New details revealed in two separate murder cases involving Wilmington teens
Two Wilmington teenagers facing murder changes made appearances in juvenile court Tuesday.
One of the teens was a 17-year-old male defendant who was making his first appearance from jail via video link before juvenile court Judge J. H. Corpening II.
The boy, whose name is not being published because of his age, was arrested over the weekend and charged with first degree murder in the shooting death of 34-year-old Adriana Hall, who prosecutors say was related to the defendant. He was also charged with armed robbery and auto larceny and is being held without bond.
Prosecutors said the victim was a nurse who worked for Novant Health.
Police did a welfare check on Hall Sunday morning because family members had not heard from her and she had not shown up for work. Police found Hall dead of a gunshot wound in her home in the 3000 block of Adirondack Way.
In the courts: Wilmington police: Juvenile charged with murder in death of relative
According to prosecutors, there were no signs of forced entry. Later, police arrested the 17-year-old defendant after they found him driving the victim's vehicle while four passengers rode with him.
According to prosecutors, the boy had threatened the victim in the past when she had not allowed him to use her vehicle. Prosecutors say he entered the victim's house while she was sleeping, took her car keys from a bag where she was known to keep them and at some point shot the victim dead.
A New Hanover County Department of Social Services (DSS) employee told the court the juvenile had been in DSS custody and the department was seeking a home for him because his mother's house "isn't an appropriate place for him to stay."
Until he was arrested, the employee said, "we had no idea of his whereabouts" and he had been considered a runaway. Corpening set a so-called "transfer hearing" for Nov. 7, when the boy's case will likely be remanded to superior court, where he would be tried as an adult, with a Nov. 28 hearing to determine probable cause.
In North Carolina, murder charges involving 16- or 17-year-old defendants are almost always sent to superior court after a juvenile court hearing.
That's what happened Tuesday during another juvenile hearing held before Corpening, this one involving a 16-year-old Wilmington boy who had his case transferred to superior court, barring an appeal. He has been charged with second-degree murder in the shooting death of a 17-year-old girl, identified as Maykayla Shaniya Gibbs, and also charged with possession of a firearm by a minor. His name is not being published because of his age.
In the courts: Wilmington teen charged with murder in connection with shooting death of 17-year-old
According to an obituary listed on the website of John H. Shaw's Son Funeral Home, "In high school Maykalya loved to dance, do hair and make TikTok videos. She had so much love for life. All her friends would agree that she was very playful and goofy. Her smile lit up any room she walked into. She cherished the time she spent with her loving daughter."
Prosecutors said the 16-year-old who was charged gave inconsistent stories to police, in one instance saying Gibbs, with whom he had a young child, shot herself in the bathroom of a home at at 515 Meares St. while he played video games. Prosecutors said blood evidence indicates Gibbs had been shot in the front of the house and taken to the back.
Prosecutors said the defendant disposed of the gun in a nearby yard, where it was later found, and that a video from a Ring security camera captured him telling an acquaintance that Gibbs had shot herself, a statement that caused the acquaintance to express disbelief. The defendant then asked the acquaintance to help him move Gibbs' body, prosecutors said, but the acquaintance declined.
Prosecutors also said a 14-year-old witness told police she saw the defendant with a gun and that he had pointed it at both her and Gibbs while the gun was loaded. Prosecutors added that they have pictures of the 16-year-old who was charged pointing the loaded gun at an unidentified male.
Prosecutors said the gun was purchased by an adult while the juvenile in question was present. New Hanover County DA Ben David said it's possible more charges are forthcoming.
The 16-year-old appeared in juvenile court in leg shackles, hunched over a table and occasionally looking back into the audience. He was represented by Jennifer Harjo, chief public defender for New Hanover County.
Harjo said the juvenile in question has been "pleasant, respectful and non-violent" in her presence. She said he is being held at the New Hanover Regional Juvenile Detention Center "which is no place for anyone to be held," citing lack of education, "insufficient beds" and nowhere to meet privately with her client.
She said her client suffers from "extreme anxiety" and depression and has been prescribed medication for both.
Harjo added that her client and the victim "loved one another" and that "he's at a loss," terming the incident "a horrible accident."
Prosecutors asked that the 16-year-old be given a $1 million bond. Corpening ultimately gave him a $500,000 secured bond with the stipulation that he be held on house arrest under electronic monitoring if he's able to post bond.
The next court date for the defendant has not been set, and he has the opportunity to appeal the decision to transfer his case to superior court, where he would be tried as an adult.
This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Wilmington teens charged in shooting deaths appear in juvenile court
