Prosecution of juvenile charged with murder will remain in adult court

The prosecution of a Coeur d’Alene juvenile charged with murdering two family members will remain in adult court, a Kootenai County judge said Thursday.

First District Judge Benjamin Simpson denied a motion by Kootenai County Public Defender John Adams to send the case to juvenile court and declare as unconstitutional the Idaho law that automatically sends juveniles 14 and older to adult court when charged with certain crimes.

Adams is defending Eldon Samuel III, 15, who is charged with two counts of murder in the March 2014 deaths of his father, Eldon Samuel Jr., and his brother, Jonathan Samuel, 13.

Simpson cited previous case law that found it constitutional to automatically send juvenile defendants into adult court.

In another ruling Thursday, Simpson agreed with Adams that a sentence enhancement sought by the prosecutor’s office should be stricken. The prosecutor wanted to increase the minimum sentence Samuel faced due to the weapon used, but Simpson found that probable cause for an enhanced sentence was not established at Samuel’s preliminary hearing.