Three Girls Charged In Fatal School Restroom Fight

Amy Joyner-Francis

Instagram / Via Instagram: @amyinita

Prosecutors on Monday charged three girls in connection with the death of a 16-year-old classmate who died following a fight in a Delaware high school restroom.

Amy Joyner-Francis, 16, died April 21 after the altercation with the three girls. On Monday, the Delaware Department of Justice announced that16-year-old Trinity Carr had been charged with criminally negligent homicide and that prosecutors would seek to have her tried as an adult because of the severity of the crime.

Two other girls — identified as Zion Snow and Chakeira Wright — will be tried as juveniles on criminal conspiracy charges, prosecutors added. While the girls did not physically touch Joyner-Francis, officials said, they were allegedly involved with planning the bathroom confrontation.

The fight took place around 8:15 a.m. as classes were beginning at Howard High School of Technology in Wilmington. No weapons were used, school officials said at the time, and Joyner-Francis was airlifted to a hospital, where she later died.

A medical examiner determined her cause of death to be sudden cardiac arrest because of a pre-existing condition compounded by the physical and emotional stress of the assault. She did not suffer other internal or blunt force injuries.

How she died, however, played a significant role in determining what charges could be brought, officials said.

"Amy died from a cardiac incident that she was vulnerable to because of a pre-existing heart condition, but the cardiac incident would not have occurred if she had not been assaulted," the justice department stated.

If convicted, Carr faces up to eight years in prison. The other girls may be punished with up to one year in custody if convicted.

LINK: 16-Year-Old Girl Dies After Fight Inside High School Bathroom

from BuzzFeed - USNews http://ift.tt/1OcL6CH