Malcom X’S Grandson Gets Term He’s Sent To Juvenile Facility For Death Of Betty Shabazz

The 12-year-old grandson of Malcolm X was sentenced Friday to at least 18 months at a juvenile center for burning to death his grandmother, Betty Shabazz.

Malcolm Shabazz could be held until he turns 18. His sentence will be reviewed at the end of the 18 months and every year thereafter.

Malcolm pleaded guilty July 10 to the juvenile equivalent of manslaughter and arson in the death of his grandmother, with whom he had been sent to live.

The widow of the slain civil right activist suffered burns over 80 percent of her body in the blaze June 1 at her apartment in Yonkers and died June 23 after a series of painful operations.

Prosecutors said the boy set the gasoline fire in hopes of being reunited with his mother, Qubilah Shabazz, who has had problems with alcohol and a major run-in with the law.

Family Court Judge Howard Spitz rejected defense attorney Percy Sutton’s request that the boy be sent to a juvenile treatment center in Virginia after hearing testimony about numerous fire calls and youngsters running away.

The judge instead sentenced Malcolm to 18 months at Hillcrest Education Center Inc., a center for troubled youngsters in Lenox, Mass.

Spitz said Malcolm is mentally ill and a “juvenile delinquent who requires supervision, treatment and confinement.” He refused to give the boy credit for the two months he has already been in custody.

“You have a challenging road ahead,” Spitz told the expressionless boy. “I know you have the ability to prevail and become an outstanding citizen. … Good luck and Godspeed.”

Joseph DeCarlo, the probation officer assigned to the case, said Hillcrest has successfully dealt with firesetters and runaways. He said New York had no place that could deal with Malcolm.

Sutton, however, accused prosecutors of “sandbagging” the defense by failing to reveal in advance the problems at the Virginia facility, The Pines in Portsmouth, Va.

Prosecutor Barbara Kukowski denied the charge, saying she was surprised when an official from the Pines testified that last year, the facility had an escape once every eight days - including three 16-year-olds who carjacked a motorist.

Earlier Friday, psychologist Elizabeth Osborn testified that Malcolm is “a schizophrenic boy of a paranoid type,” has an extreme fascination with fire and imagines himself as a character he calls “Sinister Torch.”

The death of the Mrs. Shabazz was the latest tragedy for the family, who watched from their seats in the Audubon Ballroom in Harlem as Malcolm X was assassinated in 1965. Betty Shabazz was pregnant with twins at the time; her four other daughters, including Qubilah, saw their father’s murder.

Qubilah was accused in 1994 of plotting to kill Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan in revenge for her father’s assassination.

Betty Shabazz had publicly accused Farrakhan of a role in the murder. However, Farrakhan and Mrs. Shabazz later publicly reconciled, and charges against Qubilah were dropped in a deal with prosecutors.